“Back then I was 20, it was my first World Cup and there was so much expectation on me,” says former England striker
England’s all-time record goalscorer was a major doubt ahead of the finals in Germany that year after breaking three metatarsals while playing for Manchester United in a 3-0 Premier League defeat at Chelsea the previous April.
Rooney was passed fit to play in England’s second Group B game against Trinidad and Tobago after making a quicker-than-expected recovery – but he then tore a groin in team training and, rather than concede defeat, battled on.
Rooney’s World Cup ended with a red card in England’s quarter-final loss to Portugal.
He added: “Looking back, I should never have gone to that World Cup.