Rooney's rule for United academy lads: No flash motors until you've played 50 games for the first team, says Lingard
Jesse Lingard has revealed that Wayne Rooney laid down the law for Manchester United's academy players, ordering them not to buy an expensive car until they had played 50 games for the first team.
Lingard's time at United
Lingard, who joined United at the age of seven and made his debut in 2014 under Louis van Gaal, left Old Trafford in 2022 after playing 232 games for the club. He currently plays for FC Seoul.
Accusations of ruining the culture
Despite accusations that Lingard, along with teammates Paul Pogba and Marcus Rashford, had a hand in destroying the culture at Old Trafford, Lingard refuted those claims and recounted how players like Rooney kept them grounded.
Rooney's rule
In an interview with The Mail, Lingard said, "Wayne Rooney told me: 'Don't buy your first car until you’ve played 50 games.' Obviously, 50 games came and I drove in a Range Rover, parked up and Rooney was like: ‘Whose is that? Have you played 50 games now?’ And that was me accepted."
Lingard's achievements at United
Lingard believes that his time at United was not a failure, having played more than 200 times and won the FA Cup, League Cup, and Europa League at the club. He said, "I 100 per cent do not feel failure, I feel achievement. You just gotta look at my story from seven years old, a kid from Warrington making it all the way through."
Lingard's journey
Lingard also spoke about his journey, saying, "You have to work hard. Go to digs and leave your family at 12 years old and move schools and be in a different environment. And I was the smallest. I was tiny. Sometimes I had to play down a year. So I've been through the mill, from a football point of view."
