Rooney Happy To Be Back

Wayne Rooney was pleased to be back in action as his and United’s pre-season began with a friendly victory over New England Revolution in Boston.

Rooney, who played the first half of the 4-1 win in Boston’s Gillette Stadium, admits the first game back after the summer break is always tough, but is now looking forward to building up to the new campaign and the title defence.

"It is always difficult to play your first game," the Reds striker said. "It was a decent game on a difficult pitch, so it was nice to have a run out and get a game under our belt."

The game was United’s first since the Champions League final defeat to Barcelona in May, a setback Rooney insists has been erased from the team's minds.

"You have to draw a line under what happened at Wembley," he stated. "You have to look forward, not back. We won the Premier League and we need to look forward at the trophies we will be competing for.

"We have an exciting young team now and hopefully we can bring more success to the club."

Rooney was impressed by debutant Ashley Young, who caught the eye in a 67-minute run-out on United’s wing.

"Ashley Young has settled in well and everyone knows what he is capable of," Rooney added. "He put in some excellent crosses and we are looking forward to playing a few more games with him."