What If... Wayne Rooney joined Manchester City in 2010?

Ahead of the Manchester derby, this week on What If... we're talking about Wayne Rooney and the hypothetical around whether he could have possibly made the switch across Manchester from United to City back in 2010. Emma Paton is joined by The Athletic's Jack Pitt-Brooke and Dan Kilpatrick, as well as Andy Mitten from Talk of the Devils to delve into Rooney's at times strained relationship with Sir Alex Ferguson Our alternative timeline ponders whether the move to City could have taken place, as well as whether Rooney could have moved to Jose Mourinho's Chelsea in 2013 as well as the impact any move could possibly have had on his own - or Sir Alex Ferguson's - Manchester United legacy. Host: Emma Paton With: Jack Pitt-Brooke, Dan Kilpatrick and Andy Mitten Executive Producer: Guy Clarke Producers: Mike Stavrou, Grayson Moody Timecodes: 00:00 - Intro 01:37 - Rooney's rise at Manchester United 08:04 - A transfer request in 2010... could it be City? 13:32 - Another in 2013, Chelsea this time? 18:15 - Did Rooney get the affection he deserved when he left? 20:33 - How would Man United look without Rooney? 27:02 - Does Rooney's and Sir Alex's legacy change? 32:30 - City's trajectory with Rooney 37:21 - What if he joined Chelsea, Barcelona, Real Madrid? 40:30 - A Twitter-tangent 43:34 - 'Who Am I?' Trivia 46:17 - The Verdict: Did we get the best scenario? The Athletic FC Podcast is your essential guide to football's biggest stories, six times a week during the World Cup... Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast... Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/69AAB4o... Subscribe to The Athletic FC Podcast channel 👉 http://bit.ly/athleticuk | 🔔Make sure to enable all push notifications!🔔 Follow The Athletic FC Podcast: Instagram: @theathleticfc TikTok: athleticfcpod Thumbnail: OLI SCARFF / Stringer / AFP via Getty Images Alex Livesey / Staff / Getty Images Sport via Getty Images Shaun Botterill / Staff / Getty Images Sport via Getty Images Michael Regan / Staff / Getty Images Sport via Getty Images ANDREW YATES / Stringer / AFP via Getty Images ANDREW YATES / Contributor / AFP via Getty Images #premierleague #manchesterunited #manunited #manchestercity #waynerooney