Rooney Would Welcome Sneijder Signing

When Wayne Rooney signed a new five year contract back in October of 2010, he said he was "delighted" to be staying at the club where he belongs. He was probably also rather pleased with the amount of money he would be taking home each week, as he had been then made Manchester United's top earner with a reported wage of something above £200,000 per week.

Manchester United have been linked to a player reportedly demanding more than Rooney's mammoth wages in Wesley Sneijder, and it had been said in numerous speculative reports that Rooney was uncomfortable with a player earning more than him. That to me sounds extremely egotistical and selfish of the English striker, and it is something I wouldn't really expect from him, so I was pleased to hear that Rooney would in fact welcome Sneijder to United, no matter what his wages would be.
A source close to Rooney said:

"It's nonsense to suggest Wayne would ever stop Manchester United signing a player like Wesley Sneijder because he wants to stay the top-paid player at Old Trafford; its absolutely not true. In fact, it's just the reverse. He’s happy to see United sign any world-class player to improve the club's chances of success."

"What other players earn when they join United is of no concern to Wayne. He is happy with his own situation at the club. Wayne is committed to seeing Manchester United improve at every level, which is why he signed on for five more years last season."

Indeed, despite the questionable demands from Sneijder about his wages, it should be of no concern to any other players what they earn per week. For a player to be against a club signing another player because they would exceed their own wages is quite frankly ridiculous to me, especially when we are talking about the already massive sums of money they are being paid.

While Rooney may support the Sneijder signing, Sir Alex Ferguson's latest comments to "forget" United signing Sneijder seems to rule out the signing, unfortunately for the majority of Manchester United fans, who find Sneijder as the perfect replacement for Paul Scholes.

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Xavi would welcome Fabregas move

Xavi insists he would welcome the competition Cesc Fabregas would offer if joins Barcelona this summer.

Barca failed with two bids for the Arsenal captain last year and have reportedly had an initial offer turned down this summer too.

However, Arsenal have conceded that they are prepared to sell their skipper this summer, provided the price is right.

The European champions are expected to return with a new bid for their former youth team midfielder, 24, despite already having the likes of Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Sergio Busquets.

Xavi believes signing a player such as Fabregas to their midfield ranks can only be a positive thing, though.

"Competition is always good and Cesc is an extraordinary footballer," he said.

"If he comes, it will be to help out."

However, Xavi hopes Fabregas does not face the same comparisons he faced himself when he broke through in the late 1990s.

"They put that label on me of being a replacement for Pep Guardiola and it wasn't fun at all," said the 31-year-old.

Barca have also kept faith in their home-grown players, though, with 20 year-old midfielder Thiago Alcantara signing a new contract until 2015.

"Thiago has renewed and that's great news," said Xavi.

"He is a fantastic player with a lot of talent - the competitiveness of the group is great."

And Xavi has answered questions about his long-term fitness, by insisting he is feeling fresh ahead of the new campaign.

"I feel good physically, I'm very motivated and content," he said.

"Last year I suffered some tendonitis in the Achilles tendon but I'm over that.

"I'll try to start off as best I can and at the highest level."

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