Wayne Rooney has revealed how he used to defy the advice of legendary former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson while on international duty with England.
Rooney, who played for England between 2003 and 2018, is one of the most decorated players in his nation’s history.
With 53 goals, Rooney is behind only Harry Kane in the list of England’s all-time top goalscorers.
In addition Rooney has the highest amount of caps for an England outfield player with 120, with goalkeeper Peter Shilton the only star to have played more times for the Three Lions overall.
Ferguson, who managed United from 1986 until 2013, often used to instruct his players to only play 45 minutes during games while on international duty.
However, given his passion for playing for his country, Rooney frequently informed the national team manager that he was available to play the full game.
Wayne Rooney revealed how he defied Sir Alex Ferguson’s advice while on international duty
Ferguson often used to instruct Manchester United players to only play 45 minutes for England
Speaking on The Wayne Rooney Show podcast on BBC, Rooney said: ‘I used to love getting called up to England, whether it was a friendly, whether it was a qualifier, I used to love going, meeting up with the players.
‘That’s probably the reason I got 120 caps because I never used to pull out.
‘I always remember Alex Ferguson before we’d go in some of the games and I’m sure he’d speak to the England manager as well.
‘He’d be like ‘Right, no more than 45 minutes. Make sure you come off after 45 minutes or you only play 45 minutes.’ I’m like ‘yeah, yeah’.
‘So I’d get to England and I’d be like, ‘Boss I want to play 90 minutes. I want to play the full game, don’t take me off’.
‘I used to love playing. Whereas some players were different and some players would protect themselves with injuries as well, especially in the friendly games. I used to love going’.
Rooney featured for England at six major tournaments and scored twice at Euro 2004 when he was just 18 years old.
Despite his significant impact on the international stage, however, Rooney wasn’t able to help England win any silverware.
Rooney scored 53 goals in 120 appearances for England between 2003 and 2018
When Rooney played the England squads often contained many United players including the likes of Rio Ferdinand, Gary Neville and Michael Carrick.
However, perhaps as an indication of the club’s current struggles, there aren’t any United players in the current England squad.
