Manchester United management have been forced to reign in Wayne Rooney as he targets a first team return well ahead of schedule.

The 21-year-old England striker was ruled out for six weeks, including England's crucial European Championship qualifiers against Israel and Russia on September 8 and 12, after breaking a metatarsal for the third time in his career during United's opening Premier League fixture against Reading.

However, he has declared himself "fit and ready to play" to team-mates and is eager to figure as soon as possible - even believing he could return ahead of his newly-scheduled comeback at Everton on September 15.

Indeed, manager Sir Alex Ferguson revealed the striker's desire to return last weekend.

Ferguson said: "Rooney's fine. He's jogging and he even wanted to play against Spurs! Typical Rooney, he wanted to play with an injection. It's quite possible he'll be back in three weeks."