Everton would be interested in making Derby County boss Wayne Rooney their new manager if Rafael Benitez loses his job in the near future.
That’s according to The Sun, who claim that Farhad Moshiri and co are still hopeful of Rafael Benitez succeeding at Everton.
Yet with fans angry after a run of five points from a possible 30, Benitez is under immense pressure at Goodison Park.
Moshiri wants to have a contingency plan in place, and contact is thought to have been made with Rooney.
Currently in charge of Derby, Rooney has done an incredible job with the Rams under testing circumstances.
Rooney’s style of play and coping with off-field adversity have been commendable, as has his loyalty – but turning down Everton could be too hard.
Rooney to Everton would be a gamble
This rumour sounds a little questionable, but you can understand it to some extent.
If Everton were to sack Benitez, they would need a replacement to re-engage fans. Benitez has zero connection with the Everton supporters, and that is really hurting him now.
Rooney already has a connection with Everton fans and the club itself.
A boyhood Everton fan, Rooney came through at Goodison Park before leaving for Manchester United in 2004.
That left Everton fans angry, but Rooney came back to his boyhood club for one more season in 2017.
Relations have definitely been improved by that return, and Rooney certainly still bleeds blue.
Rooney is though a rookie manager. For all his great work at Derby, his win rate does only stand at 25%.
Everton would be taking a gamble on Rooney and hoping that his promising approach translates away from Derby.
It may take a risk like this to get Everton fans back on side, but we would still find it surprising if Rooney walked straight into the Toffees job in his first full season as a manager.
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