Wayne Rooney given final chance to make up with Manchester United

United manager Sir Alex Ferguson had insisted on Wednesday evening, following the release of a statement by Rooney which blamed the club's apparent lack of ambition for his refusal to sign a new contract, that talks with chief executive David Gill on Thursday morning would put the "saga to bed".

There is a sense within Old Trafford, however, that Rooney's stance might now have softened to the extent that a rapprochement, unthinkable just 24 hours earlier, could be negotiated.

Ferguson spent almost two hours with Gill in a meeting at Old Trafford on Thursday afternoon before leaving the stadium just after 2pm. Gill also held further talks with Paul Stretford, Rooney's representative.

But despite the high-level negotiations, Rooney's United career remains under a dark cloud, with the club confirming last night that no definitive outcome had been reached.

A club spokesman said: "There are no developments of note to report today. I can confirm a number of meetings have taken place today, including with the player's representative.

"The outcome of those meetings will become clear in the near future. In the meantime, fans are asked to be patient."

Despite the reopening of talks between United and the Rooney camp, it is accepted on both sides that the acrimony of the past week will require a major climbdown on the player's part to repair the bridges broken both within the dressing room and on the terraces.

But since Rooney's discontent became public at the weekend, Ferguson has been careful to express his hope that the player can be persuaded to reconsider his stance and commit to a new long-term contract.

And when asked on Wednesday evening whether he was considering suspending Rooney because of the distraction caused by the England forward's bombshell announcement that he was ready to leave United, Ferguson quickly played down such an outcome.

Ferguson has been angered by the content and timing of Rooney's remarks, while the player was subjected to derogatory chants during the Champions League victory against Bursaspor on Wednesday, which the player missed due to an ankle injury.

Anti-Rooney banners were also displayed during the game and condemnation of the Liverpudlian on fans' websites has been brutal, personal and castigating.

Ferguson has been given the full backing of United's owners, the Glazer family, to take whatever action he feels necessary with Rooney, but the manager's post-match comments on Wednesday, when he insisted that the club would attract that top-level players demanded by Rooney, appeared a direct message to his star player that his concerns were misplaced.

The Glazers are acutely aware of the need for United to possess a player of Rooney's global standing, while Ferguson has admitted this week that Rooney's talent is enough to fuel attempts to persuade him to stay.

United believe they can offer Rooney, who is 25 on Sunday, a salary to reflect his elevation to the football superstar bracket, but there remain concerns at Old Trafford that wealthy rivals such as Manchester City and Chelsea could offer equally lucrative packages.

City, in particular, would be ready to beat anything offered to Rooney by United.

Talks are expecting to continue between both parties on Friday and possibly into the weekend.