Wayne Rooney has been thoroughly impressed by former Manchester United starlet Ravel Morrison, with the 28-year-old undergoing a trial period at Derby, as reported by Metro Sport. 

Morrison, who is a former teammate of the coach he has been tasked to trial for, has struggled to live up to the hype that the footballing world placed on him when he emerged onto the first-team stage at Manchester United.

Despite showing plenty of promise to managers who have signed him since, he has failed to find a permanent home for long enough.

However, Morrison has been handed a lifeline by Rooney, with Derby trying to assemble a squad with limited funds.

Putting his hard graft on the training ground onto the pitch, Morrison started Derby's friendly against Manchester United earlier today, in which the Red Devils ran out narrow 2-1 winners. 

Speaking to MUTV (reported by Metro Sport), before kick-off, Rooney spoke about the 28-year-old's recent progression: "He has, he’s been with us the last week Ravel and it’s the same… some of the things he’s doing is incredible so that’s on me to manage him right.

‘There are six players in who at the moment I can’t sign so the quicker I’m able to do that the better it’d made my job easier."

The Verdict:

Despite the difficulties he has found to settle and play regular first-team football, Ravel Morrison is an exceptional talent - an opinion held by pretty much any manager that has ever worked with him.

His ability in possession, coupled with his vision and intelligence, makes him a very exciting player to watch and makes the world wonder why he has had so many struggles.

He now has a chance to impress his former teammate and if successful, play lots of football next season - something he has not been able to do in years.

There is no denying his talent, and if he shows the desire and effort that is required in the Championship, then he can still have a great career.