Wayne Rooney appointed the captain of Manchester United by Louis van Gaal

The Reds' new skipper donned the armband against Valencia and is the permanent choice of Louis van Gaal for the prestigious position with Darren Fletcher named vice-captain. In an exclusive interview with MUTV, the striker explained he will always give 100 per cent for the cause.

"It's a great pride and a great honour for me to captain the team," he told the club's official TV channel. "Obviously, I spoke to the manager and he decided I was right to take the role, which I'm delighted with.

"I'll perform the role as best I can and hopefully help the team be successful. Of course, I've played under some great captains, both for club and country, and can take a little bit of what they have brought to the role and use that. I'll obviously try to lead the players on the pitch with hard work and dedication. It's what we want to do - we want to show the fans we really care and we want to win.

"It's a massive role to take on and I'm aware of the responsibility of that. But I feel I'm ready now, at this stage of my career, to do that. I think I am quite vocal anyway on the pitch and in the dressing room and I'm sure that's what the manager has looked at. He's seen that I'm always trying to get the best out of myself and my team-mates, and trying to encourage as well, so I'm sure that was a big factor in the manager choosing me for this job."

Fletcher outlined his intention to assist Rooney in the new role as he will stand in as skipper when the England international is absent.

LAST FIVE UNITED SKIPPERS
1996–1997 Eric Cantona
1997–2005 Roy Keane
2005–2011 Gary Neville
2011–2014 Nemanja Vidic
2014—present Wayne Rooney