Wayne Rooney to be offered career lifeline after 'rubbish end to 2024' as 'lucrative' gig beckons

Wayne Rooney is set to be offered a career lifeline after his New Year's Eve sacking by Plymouth Argyle this morning.

Rooney, 39, had parted ways with the Devon club after a dire winless streak saw the Pilgrims left dead-last in the Championship.

And with England's second most prolific goalscorer now in the market for a new employer, The Sun reports that Rooney is in line for a bumper pay-day.

The newspaper cites sources saying the 39-year-old ex-Manchester United ace will be offered a chance at punditry work "straight away".

One TV insider said: "Wayne is regarded as one of the best pundits in the business.

"He's very, very knowledgeable about the game.

"And even though he's actually quite a shy person, he really feels at home in a TV studio."

"It's been a rubbish end to 2024 for Wayne, but he's not going to be out of work for long," the insider added.

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"He'll be offered punditry work straight away and there's interest from Sky in a potential long-term deal to tie him down as a pundit.

"Wayne still harbours ambitions of making it as a manager.

"But, like Gary Neville, it might end up being the case that he can carve out a more successful and lucrative career as a pundit rather than as a manager in the dugout."

It's a sentiment that's been echoed by The Telegraph's Jason Burt, who has deemed punditry an "obvious route" for the ex-Three Lions captain.

And it's also a line of work at which Rooney has tried his hand before.

He's frequently popped up on The Overlap with ex-pros-turned-pundits Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher, Ian Wright and Roy Keane.

And though he has proven his way with words through a number of newspaper columns, questions remain over how fans will take to a more permanent role for Rooney on TV.