Wayne Rooney's game is hurting in media glare, says Sir Alex Ferguson

Sir Alex Ferguson has admitted for the first time that Wayne Rooney's form has suffered for Manchester United this season because he is struggling to cope with the intense media spotlight that has been placed upon him.

Rooney, the reigning Footballer of the Year with 34 goals last season, has been conspicuously short of reaching that level this season, and Ferguson believes the player may be mentally exhausted after allegations about his private life.

"I don't believe he has a confidence problem but the boy is starting to realise finally, without any question, what kind of focus is on him as a human being," Ferguson said. "He is realising what it means to be at the centre of media attention for non-football-related questions.

"I don't think the boy can turn a corner at the moment without a camera on him. He can't move without the paparazzi being on him and, for a young person, that is not what you want. You want to play and enjoy your football without that attention on you, because that can be quite exhausting."

Rooney has not scored from open play for United in his five appearances this season, his one goal coming from the penalty spot in the 3-0 defeat of West Ham United last month. He was left out of the trip to Everton two weekends ago, with Ferguson saying it was unfair to subject him to the abuse of the home supporters following revelations in the News of the World and the Sunday Mirror.

It is the first time in Rooney's career that his performances seem to have been adversely affected by some of the headlines he has attracted, and Ferguson painted the picture of a man not enjoying his professional work. "He would like to keep playing with freedom, but the siege of the tabloids can wear out anyone."

Ferguson's dislike of the media can be accurately gauged by the United manager abandoning his weekly press conference tomorrow because of his annoyance about the way his criticisms of Fernando Torres were reported after the 3-2 defeat of Liverpool on Sunday. Asked about the free-kick that led to Steven Gerrard scoring Liverpool's second goal, Ferguson had accused Torres of exaggerating his fall to try to persuade the referee, Howard Webb, to show a red card to John O'Shea. "I've watched it and Torres made a meal out of it," he said. "He made an absolute meal of it to try to get our player sent off." Ferguson's issue is that he was reported in some newspapers to be accusing Torres of cheating.

In an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport, Ferguson reiterated that he was not concerned by Chelsea's immaculate start to the season, with five straight Premier League wins, because he considered they had been fortunate with their early fixtures. "I think Chelsea chose the calendar themselves," he told the Italian paper, reflecting on a fixture list that has seen the champions play West Bromwich Albion, Wigan Athletic, Stoke City, West Ham United and Blackpool. "It's been a quite amazing start for them but you still have to beat those teams and Chelsea have done that in quite a strong fashion. They finished last season scoring a lot of goals against the weaker teams and have continued that way. Anyone who wins the league will have to finish above them."

Ferguson described Everton as "the big disappointment", with only two points from five games, and he forecast a difficult season for Aston Villa. "The change of manager at Villa will take time, and [Martin O'Neill's replacement] Gérard Houllier has a learning curve to achieve."

He went on to speak of his belief that United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur could be the strongest four teams again. Liverpool did not merit a mention, although he did not discount Manchester City. "City did not have the strongest start of the season, but you have to think that with the squad they have they will be there. I saw the Liverpool game [a 3-0 win] and they're going to be a big challenge, the power they have, the big lads in the team. Roberto Mancini bought half a team in the summer, which will not be easy to bed down, but if they get continuity they'll certainly be a threat."

Switching his attention to the Champions League, Ferguson also predicted a stronger threat from Real Madrid now José Mourinho is manager. "Real Madrid are better off, without question, and you can expect them to improve. The Real Madrid job is the hardest challenge in José's career. I've spoken to José a couple of times and he's not managing a normal football club. Sometimes he's managing a circus, sometimes a fantastic outfit in term of the quality of the football they can produce and the kind of players they always want. But it's a very difficult club to manage."