According to Tony Banks and Paul Joyce of the Daily Express, Chelsea appears ready to abandon its attempt to land Rooney, setting an August 26 deadline to do so.
That isn't just a random date chosen by Blues boss Jose Mourinho. In fact, it's a very specific date as that is when Chelsea and Manchester United will ready for a showdown during the second week of the season.
Going after Rooney has been a long and arduous process for the Blues during the month of August. Chelsea has submitted two bids already for the star striker and are preparing a third for around £28 million plus add-ons, per the same Daily Express report.
From all indications, the Blues' offer hasn't been the issue in their quest to land Rooney. It's quite clear that United has no intentions of getting rid of Rooney regardless of the English star's demands and whatever price Chelsea is willing to pay—and United boss David Moyes has echoed those sentiments.
It's a logical move for the champions. United is set to defend its crown this season and Rooney is a key piece in that process. Not only would letting Rooney go greatly hurt United's effort to repeat, but it also would alienate fans.
So, unless United is just posturing to get an even better deal than those already on the table from Chelsea, Rooney appears set to stay for another season and no price is good enough to take him away.
Not to mention Chelsea will also face stiff competition from Arsenal, which has recently thrown its hat into the race for Rooney.
The question remains: Does Chelsea actually need Rooney?
It's obvious that a great player like Rooney is always needed on any squad because of his talent. Rooney is a force when healthy and playing at his best, and he's arguably an improvement over anyone Chelsea has now.
But when looking at it logically, Chelsea doesn't need Rooney. The Blues finished third in the Premier League standings last season and that was without Rooney on the roster. Clearly this club has what it takes to be elite as is and doesn't need United's star player to accomplish that.
While Rooney would help Chelsea in the scoring department, Mourinho's squad doesn't need much help there after netting 75 goals in 2012/13, which was good enough for No. 2 in the league behind than United.
Chelsea already stands deep at Rooney's position also, which is something Frank Lampard pointed out in a piece by Jack De Menezes of The Independent:
Asked if he agreed that Mourinho generally gets his own way when chasing transfer targets, he said: 'Yes he does, I think that has shown, but when you're talking about us here we've got a big squad, we've got three or four strikers already.
'We're going into the season strong, but if the manager wants to add another player we all hope he gets his man.'
That ringing endorsement is not Lampard being diplomatic by any stretch. Chelsea is deep at the striker position and has enough talent on the roster already to contend for a title.
Chelsea may be keen on adding another player, but it looks as though acquiring Rooney is as close to hopeless as one can get for the time being. Perhaps it would be best if Chelsea starts looking for a different player or just stands pat with what it already has.
And, if the Blues do show they are no longer interested and fed up with the process of trying to work a deal to bring Rooney to their squad, that could force United's hand to make a deal if the club is faced with the prospect of losing one of Rooney's top suitors
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