England and Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney has confirmed that he has indeed had talks and been offered the possibility of taking part in a boxing match at some point in the future.
While most people know him as one of the greatest British footballers of all time, some might also be aware that Rooney was indeed a bit of a boxer in his younger days and even fought at his local amateur club to a decent little pedigree — that’s according to Eddie Hearn, at least.
The Matchroom Sports promoter got rumours that Wazza might get in the ring circulating after his own appearance on Gary Neville’s Stick to Football, claiming that he’d had calls from the retired footballer himself trying to set something up and now the retired striker seems to have confirmed it.
Speaking with the panel of ex-pro pundits on The Overlap’s latest show, the 38-year-old was quizzed by Neville and his Monday Night Football co-host, Jamie Carragher as to whether there was any truth in it — to which he simply teased, “You never know”.
Wayne Rooney hasn't ruled out stepping into the boxing ring in the future ❌
Wayne Rooney confirms he has received offers for an exhibition boxing match.
Going on to explain the genuine discussions that have already taken place, Rooney said, “They’ve been in touch and have asked the question but at the minute I’m just focusing on getting back into management”.
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When asked if it was an exhibition for charity or part of something else, he then went on to reveal that it isn’t just a case of one offer but multiple, in fact.
“There’s been a few and obviously that Misfits [Boxing] have been in [touch] and all of the news”, said United’s all-time leading goalscorer, but once again reiterated that his main focus is simply getting back on the touchline. Can’t lie, doesn’t really matter who he was fighting, we’d pay to see it.
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Come on, we could hardly write this whole thing without mentioning that clip:
The Premier League icon insisted that he still loves boxing like his dad before him and that his “grandad still runs the gym in Crocky [Croxteth, Liverpool]” but making a prompt comeback as a manager is the first priority after being let go by Birmingham after just 83 days in charge.
As for who he’d faced up against, the likes of Logan and Jake Paul have both been banded about and given Misfits in the influencer and YouTube world — having been co-founded by KSI — who knows? All we know is that Wazza was a warrior on the pitch and we’re sure he’d be similar on the canvas.
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You can watch Wayne Rooney’s full interview on Stick to Football down below:
Featured Images — The Overlap (via YouTube)/Sky Sports
Sport
Details released of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners while Mayor
Emily Sergeant
Details of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners during his tenure as Mayor of Greater Manchester have been released.
In case you need bringing up to speed on the situation a little first, Manchester City was found guilty back in September all of its charges related to the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-season period, and on top of that, was also found guilty of the majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate with the League’s investigation.
According to the Premier League, the independent Commission found that Manchester City had arranged so-called ‘sham’ commercial deals with a number of its sponsors.
These were part of a disguised funding scheme – with those sponsors only required to pay a portion of the relevant sponsorship fees.
The remainder was then funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), which owned the club.
The Commission also concluded, as quoted by the Premier League, that the club had ‘made concerted efforts to stop and frustrate the Premier League investigation’.
Within the past week or so, it has since come to light that now-Prime Minister Andy Burnham had dealings with Manchester City during his tenure as Greater Manchester Mayor, and Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) has now issued a public statement, giving details on the matter and what these ‘dealings’ entailed.
A spokesperson for GMCA confirmed that Burnham had a ‘formal meeting’ with Man City Chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, back in October 2021.
The statement reads in full: “In October 2021, Andy Burnham, in his role as Mayor of Greater Manchester, had a formal meeting with Khaldoon Al Mubarak at the UK Government’s Global Investment Summit arranged by the Department for International Trade.
“In his capacity as Mayor, he was a guest of Manchester City FC at home matches on a small number of occasions, including attending Vincent Kompany’s testimonial match in September 2019, where he met the Chairman informally in the stands. These have been declared in the usual way.
“Also during his time as Mayor, representatives of Greater Manchester sporting clubs would routinely join business delegations as part of Mayoral international visits.
“This included representatives from Manchester United travelling to Austin and Dublin, Lancashire Cricket Club joining a delegation to India, and Manchester City FC staff supporting visits to China and Japan.”
Featured Image – Lauren Hurley / Number 10 Downing Street (Press Image via Flickr)
Sport
Multiple arrests made for ‘tragedy chanting’ and police officer assault as Man City defeated Liverpool
Emily Sergeant
Multiple people were arrested over the weekend as Manchester City defeated Liverpool in a Premier League clash.
Merseyside Police have confirmed that a total of 10 people were arrested during the policing operation at Liverpool’s home ground of Anfield as they hosted Manchester City on Sunday 11 October.
One man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police constable, five were on suspicion of tragedy chanting, one on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly, two for affray, and one on suspicion of throwing items onto the pitch.
Police are now appealing to the public, and are particularly looking to speak to witnesses of the assault of the officer.
At around 6:35pm, as fans left the stadium, a police officer sustained a ‘serious facial injury’ during the arrest of a man on Anfield Road, and was subsequently taken to hospital for treatment but is now recovering at home.
Investigating officers are now conducting enquiries, speaking to witnesses, and analysing CCTV and camera phone footage.
Chief Inspector Leanne Hobin said it’s ‘extremely disappointing’ that an officer has sustained a serious injury while carrying out their duty.
“I hope the arrests send a clear message and act as a deterrent to others,” Chief Inspector Hobin continued. “Anyone who engages in this abhorrent behaviour risks ending up in custody and getting a criminal record.
“Despite the actions of a few, the overwhelming majority of the 60,000 fans in attendance behaved well and I want to thank them for their co-operation.”
Manchester City ended up defeated Liverpool 3-0 during the Premier League clash at Anfield.
Danny Jones -
21st February 2024 
