Wayne Rooney believes moving to the Chinese Super League (CSL) would have seen him lose the motivation to play football, despite the huge pay packets on offer.
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Rooney, England's record goalscorer, was strongly linked with a switch to the CSL when he fell out of favour at Manchester United.
But the 32-year-old instead opted for a return to boyhood club Everton, ending a 13-year spell at Old Trafford, where he became the club's all-time leading goalscorer and won five Premier League titles, as well as the 2007-08 Champions League.
Rooney has signalled he would be keen to manage Everton when he hangs up his boots and the former England captain does not regret turning down a move to China.
"In the summer when I was leaving Manchester United it would have been quite easy for me to go abroad," Rooney told BBC Sport.
"Go to China, go somewhere else and pick up a lot of money and see out the last few years of my career earning a lot of money.
"That's just not me. I need those goals, I need that pressure. That desire to play would have been lost if I'd chosen that other option."
Rooney is Everton's top scorer in the league this season, hitting 10 goals and providing two assists to help Sam Allardyce's men sit ninth in the table.