Manchester United manager David Moyes reiterated Wayne Rooney is not for sale, with the England international named in the preseason touring party set to travel to Asia and Australia.
Despite Moyes insisting Rooney would stay with the club last week, reports have continued to link the forward to the likes of Chelsea, Barcelona and Arsenal.
However, Moyes again expressed his wish to keep the 27-year-old at Old Trafford, while revealing he enjoys a really good relationship with Rooney.
"The club have already stated Wayne is not for sale," Moyes said. "I have met Wayne two, three, four times.
"A lot has been said about myself and Wayne over the years but we have a really good relationship. He came to my house, I have been to his recently to have a chat. Also he is here every day.
"I will say he is training great. They are telling me it is the best shape they have seen him in for a long time.
"From that point of view I am taking it as a positive and I am going to try and get the best Wayne Rooney I possibly can."
United skipper Nemanja Vidic has been omitted from the squad which will play games in Bangkok, Sydney, Yokohama, Osaka and Hong Kong, with United not giving an immediate explanation for the Serbian international's absence.
Vidic does have long-standing injury problems and it is likely that Moyes might have decided to leave the defender behind as a precaution to ensure he does not aggravate any injury.
Chris Smalling (foot), Ashley Young (ankle) and Nani (broken nose) also miss the tour, with the latter widely tipped to leave the club this summer having failed to agree on a new contract as yet.
Robin Van Persie, David De Gea and Shinji Kagawa will join up with the squad later in the tour.
January signing Wilfried Zaha, though, is part of the squad and the youngster is still coming to terms with being able to train with the likes of Rooney and Ryan Giggs.
"It was a bit nerve-wracking at first, coming in and seeing all these players that I've watched over the years," Zaha told the club's official website. "But everyone seems all right so I'm settling in okay.
"I'm speechless really, I just never thought I'd have the chance to play with the likes of Rooney and to actually be sitting next to Giggs in the changing room. It's just a dream really."
Moyes hopes Zaha can continue United's tradition of bringing the best out of young players. "He'll travel with us on the tour now," Moyes told talkSPORT. "I'll get a chance to have a look at him. He got a bit of extra time off after being away with England's Under-21s, but I'll take him away and have a look at him and see how he goes.
"This football club has a great record of producing young players and bringing young players into the team. Hopefully Wilfried can be one of those who we push forward."
United squad: Goalkeepers: Anders Lindegaard, Ben Amos.
Defenders: Rafael, Phil Jones, Rio Ferdinand, Jonny Evans, Patrice Evra, Alex Buttner, Fabio, Michael Keane.
Midfielders: Michael Carrick, Anderson, Tom Cleverley, Ryan Giggs, Wilfried Zaha, Jesse Lingard, Adnan Januzaj.
Strikers: Wayne Rooney, Danny Welbeck.
