Rooney has picked up a hamstring injury and it is not believed he will be back in action until mid-February.
“Wayne has never had a hamstring injury before and there is no way we will bring him back early,” he said in the Daily Star Sunday.
“He’s doing terrific work in the gym and, in terms of his rehabilitation, he is on the mend.
“But we said at the time he was injured that it would be three or four weeks before he would be fit and there is no change there.”
