How has Kai Rooney progressed since joining Man Utd's academy in 2020? | OneFootball

There are a whole host of reasons why Wayne Rooney can be considered Manchester United’s greatest player ever.

The attacker lifted multiple Premier League titles with the Red Devils and experienced success on the European stage.

And along with all the trophies, he remains the side’s record goalscorer, netting 253 times in total during his 559 appearances for the club.

So when Rooney’s son Kai signed a youth contract with the club in December 2020, there were inevitably questions about whether United had signed him purely because of who his father was.

After all, this was a man who spent 13 years at Old Trafford, scoring spectacular goals every season.

But three years later, it is probably safe to say now that the youngster is entirely deserving of his spot in the youth setup.

Making his mark early on

Kai’s football journey actually began away from the Carrington training ground, with his father sending him to train with rivals Manchester City.

But in 2020, he would return to United and sign on the dotted line.

And it would not take him long to show exactly why they were so keen to get him involved in their youth teams.

Lining up as an attacker, like his father before him, he would initially cause a stir across social media thanks to his efforts in an Under-11s match against Stoke City. Kai scored a hat trick and assisted three times too during the game back in 2021.

And things would get even better in his first full season with the club’s academy.

After moving up an age group to play for United’s Under-12s, Rooney Jr announced on his Instagram account that he had scored an incredible total of 56 goals for the Red Devils.

That included one match against Liverpool back in October 2021 where the youngster would score all four goals for United in a 5-4 loss.

He would register 28 assists during that campaign as well, proving he could be a good creator as well as a goalscorer.

And he would spend time playing alongside the son of another United legend, Cristiano Ronaldo, who returned to the club in the summer of 2021.

Moving into the Under-13s for his most recent season, Kai would continue to excel in United’s academy setup.

He would score an important goal against rivals Manchester City, finding the back of the net during the U13 National Cup North final.

Those who watched him play would notice his ability, and highlights packages of the young forward started to emerge.

Kai’s finishing off of his left foot in the compilation below is exceptional, and he certainly looks to have learnt a trick or two from his dad when it comes to scoring goals.

There is one sensational effort in there where he receives the ball inside the penalty area and then calmly finds the top corner. Something that his father did on several occasions.

And he was not just doing it against people his own age either.

Footage went viral in November 2022 of young Kai kicking a ball around, and in one brilliant moment, he neatly rolls the ball from one foot to another to sit three opponents down before finishing well.

Ice cold.

There are yet again more examples in the clip above of Kai showing off his excellent finishing, especially on his left foot. Perhaps there are more to the comparisons than just the family name.

Becoming a rising star around the world

The Rooney surname and his performances on the pitch have resulted in other benefits for young Kai too.

In July 2022, despite being just 12 years old at the time, he signed a deal with sportswear manufacturer, Puma.

He continues to promote the company’s products on his social media channels, and in the last year, he has become a key part of their branding, appearing alongside Kyle Walker and music sensation Dua Lipa in Puma advertisements.

With greater exposure both on and off the pitch, his social media following skyrocketed.

More than 120,000 people now follow Kai on Instagram, all eager to keep up to date with the footballer’s progress.

That’s more followers than some players currently plying their trade in the Premier League, helping to illustrate just how much of a spotlight is on him at such a young age.

He is determined to make it at United

Despite all the posing and modelling for Puma, Kai’s main ambition remains becoming a professional footballer like his father.

And he has previously spoken about just how much of an influence the United legend has had on his footballing career already.

In a video for SY Football, he was asked about his biggest inspiration, to which Kai replied: “I know it's a bit boring but probably my dad as he’s helped me through some of the hard times and taught me a lot about the game, even just being in the car listening to him as a manager talking to all the players."

An unsurprising answer, given that he grew up watching his father embed himself into United history with his incredible goals in the Premier League and other competitions too.

Seeing Wayne achieve so much with United has provided Kai with the perfect inspiration, and he is determined to grace the famous Old Trafford turf for the senior team at some point in a similar way to his father.

Despite that ambition though, he recognises that it will not be an easy task to achieve.

“In ten years hopefully I will be playing in the Premier League for Man United,” he told SY Football. “That’s where I see myself but I’ve got to make it happen with the hard work and everything behind the scenes.”

Going off the videos that have emerged of him online with a ball at his feet, it looks as if he is working as hard as possible to turn that dream into a reality.