Player Wayne Rooney signed at Plymouth Argyle set for Home Park exit already | OneFootball

Plymouth Argyle boss Tom Cleverley has confirmed that Rami Al Hajj is closing in on an exit less than twelve months after being signed by Wayne Rooney

Plymouth Argyle head coach Tom Cleverley has revealed that out of favour playmaker Rami Al Hajj is poised to seal a move away from Home Park following the club's relegation to League One at the end of the 2024/25 Championship campaign, less than twelve months after being signed by Wayne Rooney just last summer.

As reported by PlymouthLive, Cleverley has informed local media on a video call that Al Hajj is "fairly close" to departing Plymouth, having endured a difficult first season after completing a switch from Danish outfit Odense at the end of last August.

The former Sweden youth international, who started his career in the Eredivisie with SV Heerenveen, was signed by Wayne Rooney for a reported fee of £840,000 but failed to deliver on that outlay as Plymouth suffered relegation from the Championship alongside Cardiff City and Luton Town.

Al Hajj featured on 28 occasions in the Championship, although he returned just three goals and found himself out of favour following the January appointment of now-ex-boss Miron Muslic, who did not see the attacking midfielder as a part of his plans by leaving him out of seven of Plymouth's final eight matchday squads.

23-year-old Al Hajj is not set to feature in Cleverley's thinking either, as he now closes in on a move away from Plymouth.

Tom Cleverley reveals imminent Rami Al Hajj, Plymouth Argyle exit less than twelve months after Wayne Rooney signing

Al Hajj has been absent from Plymouth's squad at their pre-season training camp in Austria this week, with Cleverley revealing that it was decided not to include the former Herenveen midfielder as part of the trip as all parties continue to work towards a departure.

Cleverley, who was appointed as Muslic's successor at Plymouth last month following his contentious dismissal from Championship side Watford, has claimed that Al Hajj's qualities will be better suited to a league abroad.

The former Manchester United midfielder said of Al Hajj: "Rami looks fairly close to a move away from the club.

"It was pretty apparent to me when I arrived and I sat down with Rami he wanted to move away from the football club, and away from England.

"I think the qualities he has suit other countries. We are all working towards that materialising so we didn't see it purposeful to bring Rami away with us.

"That's the answer for that one."

Rami Al Hajj's estimated Plymouth Argyle wage as Home Park exit nears

Although Plymouth never saw a tangible return on the investment shelled out on Al Hajj during Rooney's time in charge, and will likely be sanctioning his departure as a loss on that figure following his disappointing sole season in Devon, it does seem as though he was never too costly from a salary perspective.

According to Capology, a site that provides estimated information on player salaries, Al Hajj is earning a weekly wage of just £3,000 on his current Argyle contract, which still has two years to run.

They will not be saving too much money on his wages by completing a sale as they were never all that expensive to accommodate in the first place, and he could even be in line to receive an increase at his next destination - wherever that may be.