Everton FC news: ‘Wayne Rooney can get his mojo back at Goodison Park’, claims Rene Meulensteen

Wayne Rooney can return to his best form with stability at Everton, former Manchester United assistant manager Rene Muelensteen has told talkSPORT.

The England striker, 31, is set to trade places with Romelu Lukaku as the Red Devils and the Toffees continue their summer spending.

And despite the player having just gone through his worst Premier League goalscoring season since becoming a professional footballer, his ex-coach has insisted getting an extended run in Ronald Koeman’s side could be just the thing to kick-start his labouring career.

Meulensteen told Saturday Scoreboard: “What Wayne [Rooney] needs is to get his mojo back because as a player he wants to play every day and is full of passion and enormous drive. I spoke to him during the Michael Carrick testimonial and that hasn’t changed.

“I am sure it will be difficult to leave the club [Manchester United] after 13 years, he has given so much and broken records but at the end of the day he’s got to move to the latter days of his career. He is fit enough, still passionate enough and Ronald Koeman thinks he is getting himself a good player.

“Because of not playing enough, starting and stopping, moving positions, you need a bit of continuity and stability and if you play a lot of games that form creeps into it. If you are contributing assists and scoring goals, that gives you the confidence to play and if you don’t get that and are used to playing every game, that is where you lose that mojo and he needs to get that back.

“Obviously for Lukaku it is a good move in his career to make the next step, to one of the top teams in the Premier League, so it is a natural step for him, Rooney is coming to the latter stages of his career and you can’t be sure you are going to contribute or play every game at Man United, but you are going to play a more important role with Everton.

“Not to forget Everton is also coming into a different landscape with a new owner, look at what they have done in the transfer window. They have bought a lot of players, wanting to basically break into that top six and maybe into the Champions League. With somebody like Rooney going to Everton with the experiences he’s had, it’s a good move for everybody.”