Jamie Carragher reveals what Wayne Rooney said to him in nightclub before he became famous

Via echo

Jamie Carragher has revealed the circumstances behind meeting Wayne Rooney for the first time -

Carragher has explained how he first came into the contact with his fellow Liverpudlian.

It wasn't when they were adversaries on the field for the first time in the 0-0 Merseyside derby draw of December 2002, but in a Merseyside nightclub of all places.

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Carragher

"Wayne Rooney’s got to go in, of course," he started, before being asked if Rooney was a "street footballer'.

"I would think so [he is a ‘street footballer’]. There’s an interview from David Moyes that even when he was in the first team he’d go home after games and play football in the street, but he was still only 16, wasn’t he?

"As I said, Stevie [Steven Gerrard]’s the best player in this team, but it’s a toss of a coin. I mean to have two players of that quality come out of this city is pretty special. For me, they’re the two best English players for the last 30-40 years."

Carragher added:

"To be honest I’d heard his name a little bit, but he introduced himself to me," Carragher continued. "This was in a nightclub - in the State - State nightclub. I must have only been about 20, he’d have been only been about 14! He come up to me."

"What did he say?" asked Roach.

"He was quite funny. ‘I’m Rooney, watch out for me’. I don’t know, it was something like that, it was along them lines but he was just being his typical, mischievous self, but he was a typical Scouser - on the front foot, fancied himself, and why not when you’ve got ability like that?"

"Why do you think that there’s so many good football players from Liverpool?" Roach quizzed

Carragher replied: "I think that there’s two reasons. The first reason is we have a passion for the game that is unmatched throughout the country - I really do believe that.

"I think every dad in the city who has a son dreams of his son playing for Liverpool or Everton, and I don’t think that will ever change. Those football clubs will always produce players coming through the ranks.

"And I also think the actual characters and personalities of people from this city, what I just mentioned before. We stand up for ourselves, we believe in ourselves, we’ll always have a big role in a team, and you’ll always be noticed. Make sure you make an impression on people, and I think we do that in the main, in the city that we’re from."