Wayne Rooney arrived on the red carpet with Coleen Rooney for the launch of Disney+ series The Real Rooneys, looking noticeably leaner and with the nose operation he had long put off finally behind him. The former England and Manchester United forward, now 40, was quick to insist that the change in shape has come from work in the gym rather than weight-loss injections.
Why it landed this week
- Wayne Rooney
- Coleen Rooney
- Manchester United
- Everton
- Plymouth Argyle
Rooney said reports linking his weight loss to “the pen” had been frustrating, particularly as he had been putting the hours in to get fitter. He laughed at the suggestion but made clear that the effort was his own: “I’ve been working really hard to lose weight, then people say I’m using the pen.”
The operation, meanwhile, was prompted by a far more domestic concern. Coleen persuaded him to have his nose treated after years of living with his snoring. Rooney explained that air had not been able to pass properly through one side of his nose, so he elected to have it corrected.
It is a different sort of public appearance for a player whose career was spent in the thick of English football. Rooney scored 253 goals for Manchester United, alongside his standing as an Everton great, but his post-playing years have brought the less predictable rhythm of management.
His latest job, at Plymouth Argyle, ended in December with the club bottom of the Championship. Rooney said the uncertainty of a manager’s life was harder to prepare for than retirement as a player. A footballer can see the finishing line approaching; a coach may last a decade, two seasons or only a few months before the call comes.
For now, television has supplied a fresh routine. Rooney worked as a BBC pundit during the World Cup and on Match of the Day, saying he does not do it for the money but because he needs a purpose beyond remaining at home all day.
He accepted that another managerial post may never arrive and said he has to consider what comes next. With a grin, he suggested a place on The Masked Singer, while admitting the competition would probably tear him apart.
