WAYNE ROONEY INSISTS he still has a burning desire to win after joining Everton and is “not coming into a retirement home” at Goodison Park.
The former Manchester United captain has returned to Merseyside after 13 years with United and still feels he has a lot to offer at the age of 31.
Rooney revealed he had other options but a move back to Everton was the only one that interested him once manager Ronald Koeman made his interest clear.
“I always play like I have got a point to prove,” Rooney said at his presentation on Monday. “I’m not coming into a retirement home. I want to play, I want to win. It is a challenge I need at this point in my career.
“You play football to try to win trophies and of course that is the target. We don’t want to just limp round in the season.
“I was at the FA Cup final in 1995. It would be a special moment to win a trophy at Everton.
“I know we have got the right man to lead us. A manager like Ronald and the career he’s had, once I knew he was interested in bringing me back, it was really a no-brainer, it was where I wanted to come and play.
“There were other options there but once I knew Ronald wanted to bring me back, it was the only place I was going to be playing.”
Rooney is hoping to hit the ground running as a new-look Everton, who have also brought in Jordan Pickford, Michael Keane, Davy Klaassen and Sandro Ramirez, aim to build on last season’s seventh-place Premier League finish.
“I don’t feel fit at the minute but that will build up over the next few weeks,” said Rooney.
“It feels great to be back. I was excited this morning to go in and meet the lads and get going.
“It’s an exciting time for myself and Everton. We are moving forward, signing the right players and we are all hoping this can be a very good year for us.
“We want to keep pushing and try to bring trophies to the club. It’s what we all want. The manager will have his ideas on which players he wants to bring in and we will all pull together to make sure we give everything.
“There are tough early games so we need to get pre-season right.
“You will have to wait and see [my position]. The big thing was coming back here to play. The manager will assess the training sessions.”
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