About Wayne Rooney

The striker for both Manchester United and the England national football team, Wayne Rooney is one of the most exciting prospects of modern football. Rooney began playing for Everton's youth under-19 squad in 2000, gaining widespread notoriety during the 2002 FA Youth Cup when he scored eight goals in eight games. He made his professional debut with Everton in 2004 and was considered their biggest signing of that year. Two years later, Rooney transferred to Manchester United for a reported £49 million, turning him into one of the most expensive players in the country.

Rooney joined the English national team at 17 and went on to become the youngest player to ever represent his country. He then became England's youngest ever goalscorer when he scored against Macedonia during a Euro 2004 qualifier. Despite his success, Wayne Rooney is in danger of being known as much for his temper, as his ability to play football. He picked up 12 yellow cards during the 2003-2004 season, and was lucky in one match not to be removed from the game. He faced similar trouble in 2006 when he picked up a pre-season red card that caused him to miss three matches and severely impacted his level of play for the rest of the season. His frequent on-field tantrums have also caused the English Schools' Football Association to drop him from a guest appearance claiming he was not a good role model for young players.

Background

Born at Fazakerleyin Hopsital in Croxteth, Liverpool, England Wayne Rooney grew up to become a prodigy and the youngest ever player to join England’s national team in international play. As a child Rooney dreamed of being a part of his favorite team Everton. As a family, much like all of the town, were huge Everton fans, and Rooney used his bedroom window to display his pride, with Everton memorabilia.

As a young boy playing with the club Copplehouse, he was inspired by his Everton idols and a Scottish player Duncan Ferguson. His coach from his youth team in Loverpool said he noticed Rooney’s skill as a young boy, as he kicked like a man even then. People would say he was a kid in a man's body. Before he had even entered the double digits, at the age of nine, his talent was obvious to Bob Pendelton, an Everton scout. After an astonishing 99 goals with his youth club just before he turned 11, Everton came calling. He joined the Everton Academy, training to join the team he had idolized for so many years. His natural abilities and skills were evident. As a young lad, at fifteen years old, he was playing with the U-19 clan. A bright moment among his time with the U-19’s, was his stunning goal in the FA Youth Cup semi-final at White Hart Lane. It was here, that in celebration, he lifted his jersey revealing a message on his tshirt, proudly claiming, “Once a blue, always a blue.” His hometown of Liverpool and the team they loved, Everton, would soon be unhappy with Rooney, as his “Always a blue” became Red as he left Everton for Manchester.

Club Football

Everton As he grew as a player, and moved from Everton youth, to its first team in the Premiership, history was in the making. On October19, 2002, Rooney made history in the Premiership. In a match with Everton against Arsenal, he scored a last minute goal, winning the match for his squad. With that goal, his popularity took of, because of a young lad, the Arsenal’s thirty game wining street hit brick wall. With that goal he also became the youngest player ever to score in the Premiership. He was just 16, days away from his 17th birthday. James Milner soon took the youngest goal scorer place being 16 and 357 days, as opposed to Rooney’s 16 years and 360 days. Soon after, James Vaughan took the reign just a few days younger, and still holds the record today. Just a few months later, with his name in all the papers, and skill to defend it, he became a celebrity. He was crowned BBC Sports Young Personality of the Year, for 2002.

With Everton he had no set contract, due to his age. He would have to wait till he was seventeen to create a contract, and continue playing for £80 a week, and continued living in his family’s home. He continued to play with Everton until 2004. In his last year at Everton he would join the national team, and look to higher pay and bigger clubs. On 26 December 2002 he "achieved" the record of becoming the youngest player ever to be sent off in a Premiership game. This is also his only standing record in the Everton books.

Manchester United

In September 2004, Rooney no longer bore his Blue jersey with the number 18, he wore the big bold Red jerseys of Manchester with a new number, 8. His debut game, on September 28, 2004 proved to be a spectacle. Rooney scored a hat trick against Fenerbahce, giving Manchester a 6-2 win. In 2006’s English Cup, Rooney scored two goals in the final of the match against Wigan Athletic, leading to a 4-0 victory to win the cup. He received the Winners Medal, the first of his professional career and given the award of Man of the Match, due to his spectacular performance in the final. That October, in a match against Copenhagen, he wore the Captain armband, showing his leadership on and off the field. On November 26, 2006 he signed a two-year extension to his contract which was originally bolted until 2010. The quickly build up contract, secures Manchester as Rooney’s home until 2012. Both were confident and excited about the decision. The development of the man Sir Alex Ferguson, coach of Mancheter, describes as “the best young player I have seen in my time.”

The 2006-2007 season proved to be a little more rough for Rooney, as he went on a ten game drought, scoring no goals. Finally, it seemed to all come back, in a match against Bolton ,where Rooney not only scored a goal, he concluded the game with a hat trick. During the FA cup match against Portsmouth, Rooney secured further his importance as an asset to Manchester. With the game at a tie, Rooney entered as a substitute, and pounded in two goals. In the derby against Bolton, it was Rooney that scored two or Manchester’s four goals, clinching another victory. In the Champions league 2007, Rooney scored to clinch a 2-1 victory against AS Roma, on April 4, 2007. Then in the semi-final Manchester took out A.C. Milan 3-2, and in true Rooney fashion he scored two of those goals. Although Manchester did not win the Champions league, Rooney’s all star scoring capabilities and drives into the net, could not be forgotten. By that April, he had scored 23 goals with Manchester in tournaments during 2006-2007, and was side by side with his teammate Cristiano Ronaldo, for the record.

Rooney’s Red jersey soon was altered as he was taking over the #10 jersey, worn by Ruud van Nistelrooy after he left for Real Madrid. It was also formally Denis Law’s number, who wore it in his glory years with Manchester. Law, a Scottish striker, presented Rooney with the jersey.

At the commencement of the 2008-2009 year, Rooney’s career was halted, by none other than an injury. It seems only physical restrictions could stop the striker with a foot of steel. It was August 12, 2007 in the opening game against Reading, he was injured with a hairline fracture to a metatarsal in his foot. With an expected recovery time of two months, Manchester would have to alter its attack, but Sir Alex Ferguson, would announce he would only be sidelined for a few weeks. With a little over a month of rest for his fracture, Rooney was back on the field, scoring a goal on October 2, 2007 against AS Roma in the UEFAd} Champions League. Rooney was back, and scoring unstoppable goals.

But, yet again injury came back to slow him down. In November, with an ankle injury during training, Rooney was forced to let his ankle heal, missing an international match against Croatia and three league matches. His recovery, expected at a month, was cut short, as Rooney as back on the training field in 2 weeks. On December 3, he nearly played a full match, hustling for 70 minutes.

International Football

England When Rooney debuted on the International scene, in a friendly against Australia, on February 12, 2003, he was the youngest player to ever grace the field with England’s national team. He was 17, and the previous player to hold this place, was James F.M. Prinsep, on April 5, 1879. Let’s just say, it had been a while, it took over a century for someone with the caliber of Rooney to come along. Soon a younger lad, Theo Walcott, in 2006, took the record playing with England in a match against Hungary at the age of 16. Rooney still does hold the prestige of being the youngest ever England goal scorer, at 17 years old and 31 days.

The Euro 2004, was a platform for Rooney’s success’. During that run in Portugal he scored two goals while playing Switzerland. This made him, at the moment the youngest player to ever score in the UEFA European Football Championships. Johan Von Lanthen, broke the record a few days later, playing with Switzerland. The English did not get further than the quarter finals in the Euro 2004 Tournament, losing in penalty kicks. Rooney was also injured in this game.

Once again, in the Premier League game, playing with Manchester United against Chelsea, in April 2006, Rooney was injured. It proved to be more than a slight injury, he had broken his metatarsal due to a dangerous tackle with Chelsea’s Paulo Ferreira. With the FIFA] World Cup 2006 approaching quickly, he worked to heal quickly and with the help of a pure oxygen tent. The English National Team needed Rooney, he had grown to be a key defining player, and a favorite of the fans. The Nation watched and read about Rooney’s recovery. They were excited and in awe when they saw him enter a world cup group match against Trinidad and Tobago, as a sub in the 82nd minute. He then started the next group match against Sweden, although it was difficult to catch up with the pace of the game, coming off a serious injury. The aggressive Rooney was quite visible when he fouled Ricardo Carvalho in the quarter final match, resulting in a Red Card. England did not fall far behind, being eliminated from the tournament in penalty kicks, as Rooney shot sailed past the goal and missed the net.

Controversy and Red Cards Rooney began his international career at 17, a ripe age while standing next to older men, who had been playing for years. Although he is a quiet lad, his aggressiveness and frustration cannot be camouflaged on the field. He often let his temperamental nature get the best of him. It began in September 2002 where he was red carded while playing for Everton. Then in September 2005 while playing a frustrating match against Northern Ireland. With no goal for England throughout the first half, Rooney lost his composure and exploded angrily. When former England captain David Beckham attempted to calm him down, he simply angrily attacked him as well.

Soon after, while in Spain for the United Champions League Rooney was dismissed in a match against Villareal. Referee Kim Milton Nielsen handed a yellow card to Rooney in the 63rd minute and then a red due to Rooney ironically applauding the official after being shown a yellow card.

Due to this ill behavior he has vowed to control his aggressive temper, his club and English National Team managers have also made clear they are defending him. These managers often bring up his youth and attempt to defend his behavior based on this. His red card count did drop in the 2005-2006 season with England, but was struck by an occurrence in the FIFA 2006 World Cup, where after a tangle with Ricardo Carvalho resulted in much more. As referee Horacio Elizondo stood close by, the ball was being chased down by the two players Carvalho fell to the floor, and Rooney turned looking for the ball and forcefully appeared to stomp on Carvalho in the groin. Then, Cristiano Ronaldo Rooney’s Manchester United Teammate, but that day a Portuguese player and his competitor, stepped in to demand that Rooney’s play was a foul. A frustrated Rooney then pushed Ronaldo and the referee pulled out a red card. The referee reassured everyone that later that the card was given due to the violent foul and had nothing to do with the scuffle between Rooney and Ronaldo. Elizondo stated, “For me it was a clear red card, so I didn't react to the Portuguese players. There was pushing and shoving on both sides but for me it wasn't a reason to caution anybody.'’ Controversy over the foul heightened when media pundits found more reason to investigate. They found that Ronaldo had whispered something into Rooney’s ear, right before the match kick off on the field. Many believe it was simply a friendly gesture, being they were teammates on Manchester.

Then, also caught on film, is Ronaldo winking at his team bench the minute after Rooney had been sent off. It was speculated someone, specifically Ronaldo had been attempting to aggravate the young player, knowing his history. The English Striker followed up in a press conference on July 3rd, informing the public he held no angst against Ronaldo, and insists he did not deliberately stamp on Portugal's Carvalho in Saturday's World Cup quarter-final and was shocked by the red card. The FIFA disciplinary committee, meant to follow up incidents like this, investigated Rooney’s ejection and banned him from playing two competitive international matches and a monetary fine of $4,085. His violent conduct resulted in doubling the normal one game suspension and will result suspension for the first two of twelve qualifying matches for England, in the 2008 European Championship.

In August of 2006, fresh from the Red Card of the World Cup, Rooney was again sent off in a match with Manchester United against FC Porto, during the Amsterdam Tournament. He elbowed defender Pepe, and was immediately handed red card, as well as three match domestic suspension handed to him by the Football Association. Rooney attempted to fight this accusation and punishment, as a pre season match red card had never resulted in this action by the FA, but the suspension was left as stated.

From the field to the public, Rooney added to some controversy. It was said, but never reported by police, that during that September Rooney was dining at a Manchester United Restaurant with his fiancée Coleen McLoughlin. According to british media, Michael Gray a Blackburn Rover’s player was making sexually explicit comments to Rooney’s wife. Frustrated and defensive Rooney allegedly punched Gray.

In April 2006 When tabloids claimed he had assaulted his fiancée, he fought back knowing it was untrue, and received £100,000 from The Sun and News of he World, which he donated to charity.

International Goals

Awards and Honors

Manchester

• Premier League Champions: 2006-07
• Premier League Runners Up: 2005-06
• League Cup Winner: 2006
• Football Association Cup Runners Up: 2005, 2007
• Community Shield 2007

Personal Awards

Career Statistics

M = Matches, G = Goals, A = Assists

Personal Info

Rooney has two younger brothers, and was raised in a middle class working family. His mother Jeanette and his father Wayne raised the boys in a three bedroom council house. His brother Grahm was born in 1987, and the youngest, John in 1990. The brothers attended De La Salle school where his mother worked as an employee for the school cafeteria. Although he did attend school he did not receive his GCSE, a English Qualification tested at Secondary school.

Rooney has become a spectacle in England, as has he broke many soccer records and received quite the amount of Red Cards. He is often a part of English tabloids and headline news.

He is said to have wanted to be a boxer as a young child and likes Mike Tyson and his intense skill. He appeared on “Merk’d” which is a show were they play tricks on you, without you knowing, similar to Punk’d. It was quite the laughing episode, featuring his teammate Rio Ferdinand, where Rooney was left with a Manchester United fan’s dog.

To add to the list of Rooney’s diverse accomplishments, Rooney signed what is the largest sports book deal ever. In March 2006, with Harper Collins publishing he signed on to write 5 books over twelve years. He will be receiving £5 million for the series. His first of five is in bookstores, and he titled it My Story so Far, telling the world about his life with author Hunter Davis, released after 2006’s World Cup. The release spun a threat of a suit against Rooney by Everton Manager David Moyes, accusing him of wrong telling about his leaving of Everton.

Rooney also has a Wayne Rooney Annual released every year, read by many of his young fans. Also, to appeal for more fans, Rooney wanted to create a website for himself. The domain name waynerooney.com was already taken created in 2002, therefore Rooney and his lawyers had to make a trip to the UN World Intellectual Property Organization to ask for ownership of the domain name, waynerooney.com. In October they handed over that name to Rooney, and today WayneRooney.com, is the strikers official site.

Wife / Girlfriend

Rooney is engaged to Colleen Mcloughlin, who he has been dating for many years, since 16 as secondary school ended. She is known in England as a shopaholic for her shopping and style escapades. They reside in Cheshire, in a village of Prestbury in a £4.25 mansion, purchased as his trade to Manchester United was confirmed. Funny story about the decision to live here, as Rooney saw a pub titled Admiral Rooney. He thought it seemed like a perfect town, if he would have glanced again he might have seen it was Admiral Rodney. Controversy spread concerning their relationship when allegations of Rooney and Prostitutes rose, which he admitted to according to England’s TIMES.

Sponsors

Marketing worth of over 45 million pounds, Rooney appears on the cover of FIFA 06, 07 and 08 video games in the UK

• www.Nike.com
• www.Nokia.com
• www.Ford.com
• www.asda.com
• www.CocaCola.com

Important Links

• http://www.rooneywayne.net/
• http://www.rooneysoccer.com/
• http://www.waynerooney.altervista.org/
• http://www.biographyonline.net/sport/football/wayne_rooney.html
• http://www.manutd.com
• http://wayne-rooney-news.newslib.com/
• http://www.waynerooney.com

• http://youtube.com/watch?v=dXDDFzrnl7w
• http://youtube.com/watch?v=yN75zKV7K1E
• http://youtube.com/watch?v=YjCneugi52s
• http://youtube.com/watch?v=gR3-1b3wSjg
• http://youtube.com/watch?v=PW0JL0SkgAo&feature=related

References

• http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/m/man_utd/4276155.stm
• http://www.usatoday.com/sports/soccer/worldcup/2006-07-08-rooney-ban_x.htm
• http://www.tsn.ca/soccer/news_story/?ID=176773&hubname=soccer
• http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/internationals/4212920.stm
• http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/4234188.stm
• http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=373212&cc=5901
• http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/james-lawton-whats-wrong-with-wayne-rooney-416589.html