Wayne Rooney: Manchester United have taken a ‘step’ towards the formula of the glory years under Michael Carrick

Rooney believes the actions of Carrick and his staff away from the first team have also contributed to the feeling that the club is starting to return to what has made them so successful in recent years.

“There’s a calmness in the place,” Rooney added.

“I was watching the Under-16s on Saturday morning and they were all there again. Michael Carrick was there, Steve Holland, Jason Wilcox, all the coaches were there and so on, which is something you’ve heard me talk about a lot, about that connection to the academy.

“What I saw, not just from Michael, but from the other coaches, Jonny Evans as well, is a real calmness and belief.

“Michael told me how good the players were and he felt he had to stop the session early because they were so good and he wanted to get it over with.

“And that was proven today. Absolutely amazing performance.”

It sang a jubilant ending away from winning the league, and although that may be out of reach this season, winning the title has been the norm under Sir Alex Ferguson.

United won 13 league titles under the Scot, with Rooney a key part of five of those successes.

He added: “You have to go back to United’s DNA and United as a club and the things you want to see.”

“I’ve been there for 13 years, so [there are] Things you want to see at this football club that I haven’t seen there for a long time. And I thought it was absolutely wonderful.

“You’ve got all the coaching staff there watching the Under-18s game. Then again, on a Saturday morning, they’re all there watching the Under-16s game after the training session.

“These are all things that have been happening in the past and they make a big difference. In my view, they have taken a step towards taking the club back a little bit to what it was when it was successful.”

“I know how Michael works and I know what he can do with this team. I’m really happy with the start he made because he and his coaches were criticized as well and they went and competed with the best teams in the league.”