Ronald Koeman has admitted he would be interested in bringing Wayne Rooney back to Everton if he was to leave Manchester United in the summer.

The United captain has made just eight Premier League starts for Jose Mourinho's side this season and there has been speculation linking him with a big-money move to China.

Rooney left Everton in 2004 and has become the leading goalscorer for both United and England. Koeman and Everton's director of football, Steve Walsh, believe he is a player that can make the Toffees even stronger.

Koeman would welcome Rooney's return

Speaking to Sky Sports on Tuesday, Koeman said Rooney made a "good choice" staying in the Premier League as the Blues boss believes the 31-year-old is still capable of "playing at a high level." The Dutchman believes the United captain still has a lot to offer, adding that Rooney still has "two or three years in front of him to play at the highest level."

Rooney's long-term future at Old Trafford is in doubt and his future is likely to be the main talking point when the transfer window reopens in the summer. Although the Everton boss said he was unsure what will happen at the end of the season, Koeman admitted he would be interested in bringing the England international back to Goodison Park.

Koeman said Rooney is a player who can "make Everton stronger," before adding that every player who they feel can make the team stronger is "welcome at Everton." ​

'Not to be interested in Rooney would be wrong,' says Walsh

Everton's director of football, Steve Walsh, said for Everton "not to be interested in him would be wrong," before adding if the opportunity arose for Rooney to return to Goodison Park and "it sat right with everybody, then it's something we'd look at."

Walsh said "why would he not be of interest to us?", after saying nothing but praise for the striker, describing him as a "class apart" and "one of the greatest players to play in England."

Koeman and Walsh were both instrumental in bringing Morgan Schneiderlin to Goodison Park from Manchester United in January and they will now be hoping they can prise Rooney away from Old Trafford. The Toffees already had one bid for their former striker rejected in January, according to reports, but one thing's for sure, Rooney would certainly be welcome back at Everton.