Wayne Rooney to make Manchester United return in Dublin next month

Sir Alex Ferguson has earmarked Manchester United's friendly in Dublin next month as the comeback date for Wayne Rooney and most of the rest of club's World Cup contingent. Rooney, Nemanja Vidic, Michael Carrick, Park Ji-sung and Patrice Evra were given 28 days to recover from their extended seasons in South Africa, regardless of their playing time in the tournament. They have been told their first appearances of the summer will come against an Airtricity League XI in Dublin on Wednesday 4 August to celebrate the opening of the Aviva Stadium, the rebuilt Lansdowne Road ground. Javier Hernández, who impressed with two goals during Mexico's World Cup campaign, will join United's tour of north America in Houston next week before facing his former club, Guadalajara, in Mexico in a game arranged as part of his £7m transfer.