Topics: Wayne Rooney, Manchester United, England, Football, Premier League
Manchester United and England legend Wayne Rooney didn't hesitate when naming the toughest opponent of his career.
Rooney is one of the greatest players ever to play in the Premier League, and is United's record goalscorer.
Only Tottenham's Harry Kane and Manchester City's Sergio Aguero have scored more goals for a single club in the English top flight, while Rooney's 103 career assists in the Premier League also rank him fourth in the all-time list.
Rooney began his career at Everton, emerging on to the professional scene at the age of 16 in 2002, and had another spell with the Toffees after leaving United.
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The forward ended his career with spells at DC United and Derby County, before moving into coaching.
Rooney was England's record goalscorer until Harry Kane broke the record in 2023, and captained his country at Euro 2016.
Speaking to Gary Neville on The Overlap last year, he was asked to name his toughest opponent - and gave a detailed answer explaining his decision.
He said: "I'd probably say John Terry. You always thought you could do him for pace, but he'd put himself in good positions.
"He was obviously physical, he was strong, good in the air. He could match you physically. John Terry was the most difficult."
In 2022, Rooney revealed in a documentary that he changed his studs ahead of United's clash against Terry's Chelsea in 2006 because he 'wanted to hurt someone'.
"If Chelsea won a point, they won the league. At that time, I couldn't take it.
"The studs were legal, they were of a legal size, but they were bigger than what I would normally wear."
Terry was injured by Rooney during the game, with the England striker suffering a broken metatarsal in the same game that wrecked his preparations for the 2006 World Cup.
The FA warned the now former Plymouth boss about his conduct after the comments emerged.
Responding to Rooney's comments on Instagram, Terry said: "Of course not [I don't care]. We know each other well enough had many battles over the years.
"[I had] two stitches at half-time. There was no way I wasn't coming out for the second half to win the league, beating Manchester United 3-0."
