Wayne Rooney has landed himself in hot water with the Football Association after a claim he made in an interview that he wanted to hurt someone.
In an interview with the Mail on Sunday which came out as part of the publicity for his upcoming Amazon documentary, suitably titled ‘Rooney’, the Derby County manager opened up on his mental health struggles during his playing days and how he would turn to drink in order to cope with the pressure of both his professional and personal life.
However, the former Manchester United and England superstar also opened up on a darker part of his game, claiming that before a game against Chelsea in 2006 he purposefully wore long metal studs as opposed to plastic ones in order to “hurt someone”.
Rooney did subsequently leave an injury on then Chelsea captain John Terry, drawing blood from the defenders foot when the two collided during a tackle. While Terry was forced off with a stretcher, his side won the title that day with a resounding 3-0 victory.
Although this would be their last one until 2010, as Sir Alex Ferguson and Rooney led Manchester United to a second triple-header of Premier League titles from 2007 to 2009, a team some argue to be the greatest team ever to grace the league.
According to The Athletic, Rooney has been contacted over his comments for clarification over the meaning behind his words.
Whether the FA deem Rooney’s comments to be punishable in some way remains to be seen, but considering the comments are regarding a fixture from 16 years ago, it could be a tricky one to navigate.