Wayne Rooney may have delayed ex-Manchester United teammate's transfer with 'crazy rule'

Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney may have unwittingly scuppered his former teammate Jesse Lingard from moving to the MLS at the end of last season after implementing the 'discovery rule' at DC United.

Lingard has been a free agent since the culmination of the 2022/23 campaign after being released by Nottingham Forest. In the time which has followed, the midfielder has struggled to get his foot through the door at another club.

While he has trained with West Ham United and Inter Miami, Lingard was never offered a deal and remains a free agent as MLS teams continue to be linked with him. However, during an interview in The Times in July 2023, Rooney admitted to implementing a little-known rule that could have scuppered Lingard's hopes of a move stateside.

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He explained: "You don't know about 'discovery' players? Okay, take Erling Haaland.

"We could put Haaland on our discovery list and it means that if he ever came to the MLS but let's say wanted to play for one of the LA teams and not us, the LA team would have to pay Man City – and us. Because we've 'discovered' him! It's crazy.

"If you're clever, you can make money. Last year when Jesse Lingard signed for a year with Forest we put him on our discovery list.

"We thought there's every chance that after a year at Forest he'll want to come to the US and that would mean we could sign him or get money for him." The catch to the rule is that the window to gaining money lasts just a year.

As Lingard joined Forest a year ago, the clause is unlikely to still be active and any MLS club who wants to sign him will not need to pay DC United any money. Rooney, who is also a free