Wayne Rooney has revealed that he received death threats as a teenager when he completed a transfer from Everton to Manchester United during his playing career.
The former England striker burst onto the scene as a 16-year-old with Everton and drew the attention of Sir Alex Ferguson who brought him to Old Trafford in a deal worth £27m.
Rooney had turned down an offer to remain at Everton and had to weather a lot of abuse including his parent’ house getting spray painted.
Speaking on The Wayne Rooney Show he said: “I got death threats. My parents’ house was getting spray painted and smashed up. My girlfriend at the time, wife now, her house was getting spray painted.
“I think that’s where you have to be mentally strong. The people around you have to help.
“Leaving was difficult because I went to Manchester United, and Liverpool and Manchester was a big rivalry so that made it a lot more difficult.
“But I was always of a mindset of ‘I don’t care’. I knew what I wanted and I knew how to get there.
“I had to stay tough in my mind. This was people from my city so it was tough but I thought ‘I don’t care’, you have to be selfish and make these decisions.”
Rooney made the switch to Man Utd in 2004 in an era when social media was just beginning to develop and was nothing like the juggernaut it is today.
The 40-year-old explained how it is easier now to follow and abuse young footballers who play for their club academies and used his son Kai, who is on the books at Manchester United, as an example.
“Now the difference is social media,” Rooney added, “When I was young, I was in the local newspapers and so everyone in Liverpool really knew me.
“Now I have it with my boy who’s 16 and he’s on social media. He plays for my United, he’s sponsored by Puma and there’s hundreds of thousands or millions of people watching them when they’re that young, and I didn’t have that really.
“Being a young player and going into the first team especially, you’re getting judged. Rightly or wrongly, you get judged and that’s where you need the people around you, people at the club or your family to keep you in a good place.
“We can all get carried away with social media as well. So it’s really important that the people who are close to you have your best interest. It’s the main thing.”
