Wayne Rooney has revealed he has finally undergone surgery to repair a broken nose — eight years after he first suffered the injury.
The former England and Manchester United striker, 40, broke his nose while playing for MLS side DC United in 2018 but decided against having corrective surgery at the time.
Rooney continued his playing career with DC United before returning to England, where he played for Derby County. He later moved into management, taking charge of Derby, DC United, Birmingham City and Plymouth Argyle.
Now working in the media, Rooney has revealed that he finally decided to have the long-delayed procedure.
Speaking on the first episode of Stick to United, Rooney said he had the operation last week.
"I had surgery on my nose last week," he explained.
"I'm actually really lucky I've got no black eyes. But I've still got two plastic tubes up my nose which are coming out very soon. I can't wait for them to come out."
Rooney revealed that the surgery involved an incision which has since been stitched.
"They've cut here so that's all stitched. It's a little bit uncomfortable," he said.
The former footballer admitted that he had known for years that he needed the operation but repeatedly put it off.
"I needed surgery but I never had it. I put it off," he said.
Rooney eventually decided that this summer was the right time to get it done.
"This summer I thought I'd get the World Cup out of the way and I'll get it done," he explained.
"I had it done last week. It went well but these tubes are horrible and they're still in."
Rooney retired from professional football in 2021 after a career spanning more than two decades.
He won five Premier League titles and the Champions League with Manchester United, and remains the club's all-time leading goalscorer with 253 goals.
He also scored 53 goals for England, making him the country's record goalscorer until Harry Kane surpassed his tally in 2023.
