Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney has shared his deep-seated admiration for a star-studded team that he faced during Sir Alex Ferguson’s reign at Old Trafford.
The 39-year-old former Manchester United striker arrived at the Red Devils in 2004 after he completed the switch away from Everton in a deal worth £27m.
Wayne Rooney, who is widely regarded as one of the best Premier League strikers of all time, had a sensational impact during his prolific spell at Old Trafford.
The former Everton star surpassed fellow United and England legend Sir Bobby Charlton to become the Red Devils’ all-time leading scorer.
Rooney made a whopping 559 appearances for the Red Devils and continued playing at Old Trafford even after Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013.
During his time at the Red Devils, Rooney lifted five Premier League titles, a Champions League, a Europa League, an FA Cup and three League Cups.
The former United captain’s remarkable chapter at Old Trafford came to an end in 2017 and Rooney returned to boyhood club Everton for a brief second spell.
Rooney on Man Utd and Ferguson
Wayne Rooney saw out the tail end of his legendary playing career at DC United and Derby County before hanging up his football boots in 2021.
The Manchester United legend wasted no time in entering the world of management, with Rooney currently the head coach of Plymouth Argyle.
Rooney is set to feature in BBC Sport’s upcoming two-part documentary about legendary former United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
BBC’s Sir Alex documentary focuses on Ferguson’s life inside football and outside of it and will debut on Boxing Day on the BBC iPlayer.
Rooney was part of a new wave of players that Ferguson brought to Old Trafford as part of another rebuild at United.
During the 2006-07 season, Ferguson had reinforced key positions in his squad with the likes of Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic and Michael Carrick among his ranks.
Rooney revealed that he was left in awe at the talent that AC Milan boasted in their squad when United faced the Serie A outfit in the Champions League.
“We got to the Champions League semi-finals against Milan and we beat them 3-2 in the first leg,” he said, as per BBC Sport.
“They had such [an] unbelievable team, you know – Kaka, [Andriy] Shevchenko, [Andrea] Pirlo, [Clarence] Seedorf, [Paolo] Maldini, Cafu.
“They had all really experienced players and we were just coming through and starting to find our feet.”
Rooney reveals lesson from AC Milan encounters
Rooney scored a stunning brace in United’s 3-2 win at Old Trafford in the first leg of the Champions League tie against AC Milan in the 2006-07 season.
However, the Red Devils would fall short of reaching the final after Milan produced a sensational 3-0 win at the San Siro in the return leg.
Kaka played a key role in both semi-final matches and the former AC Milan star scored a brace at Old Trafford before netting at the San Siro.
Rooney admitted that the first-leg win over the Italian side was the sign that the Red Devils were “ready to compete” after Ferguson’s rebuild of the United squad.
“I think from that moment, especially the first game when we won, we knew we were ready to compete,” he continued.
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