Wayne Rooney is one of the most recognisable football players in world football. We take a look at seven facts about the England and Manchester United striker that you probably weren’t aware of.
7. At the age of 10, a young Wayne Rooney was mascot at Goodison Park. He audaciously chipped goalkeeper Neville Southall from outside the area during the pre-match warm-ups, claiming he’d been ‘practising all week’.
6. The first meal that he ever cooked was for his wife Colleen in 2003. It was steak and chips, prepared on a George Foreman grill. He had to ring her to ask for help.
5. The only subject that he enjoyed at school was Religious Education. “Wayne’s recall of stories about the life of Jesus is quite detailed”, said one of his school reports. He wasn’t so hot on Spanish or Geography however, scoring 0% in his year 8 exams for both subjects.
4. His personal chauffeur used to be Shaka Hislop’s brother, Kona, who used to play for Carlisle.
3. Allegedly, when Rooney was first called up to the England senior squad, he fell asleep in his hotel room just before the first team meeting. They had to get a spare key from the reception desk in order to enter the room and wake him up.
2. Former team-mate Rio Ferdinand claims that Rooney has a serious FIFA rage problem, and that it’s not uncommon for controllers to get smashed when playing against the England striker. In addition, Rooney refuses to play as Real Madrid or Barcelona, as he deems that as ‘cheating’.
1.After scoring that famous goal against Arsenal in 2002, he went home and played a second game of football - this time with his mates, by the garages outside of Colleen’s house.