[Wayne Rooney Infographic: Click to enlarge]
Updated
Wayne Rooney has raised fears about the affect of injuries on his talents. After recent revelations about his weight problems, the striker has admitted there is more to it than that.
He says: “Physically, I’ve taken a bit of a battering over the years; being lumped by Transformer-sized centre-backs or having my muscles smashed by falls, shoulder barges and last-ditch tackles, day in, day out, has left me bruised. When I get up in the morning after a game, I struggle to walk for the first half an hour. I ache a bit. It wasn’t like that when I was a lad.”
Rooney’s latest absence for Manchester United and England comes after he suffered a deep gash on his thigh during their win 3-2 over Fulham on August 25.
As the Paddy Power Blog infographic shows, young Rooney has suffered his fair share of injuries, amongst them being compared to Shrek by bucks like us. And, although Rooney looks better up top these days (marginally), Ferguson will be concerned about when he can have the fully-fit scally back at his disposal alongside Robin Van Persie.
Lord Fergie has confirmed 26-year-old Rooney will return to action sooner than first feared. “It’s nothing serious on the actual gash — it’s a bad one but it was treated carefully very quickly. We don’t expect any complications from it. I think he’ll be back in four weeks,” said Ferguson.
Rooney will miss England’s qualifiers against Moldova and Ukraine, and Premier League games against Tottenham and Liverpool next month.
Design: Eleonore Kellenberger
