Wayne Rooney has reiterated his stance that he would not feel comfortable accepting a Premier League winners' medal, following Manchester City's guilty verdict on multiple alleged breaches. The Manchester United icon had previously expressed his unease at the prospect of receiving a retrospective title medal, and has now doubled down on that position.
City Found Guilty, Appeal Lodged
Manchester City were found guilty on all but one of the alleged breaches levelled against them by the Premier League. However, the club has lodged an appeal against the independent commission's ruling and continues to protest its innocence.
Enzo Maresca's men secured a commanding 3-0 victory in their domestic comeback against Liverpool, marking their first fixture since the charges verdict became public knowledge. Yet the prospect of substantial sanctions remains ever-present.
Rooney's Match of The Day Comments
Speaking on Match of The Day, Rooney stated: "They could be fighting for the title or fighting for relegation. No-one knows where it's going to end up. It's a bad situation to be in but as far as the players are concerned, all they can do is go out and try and do their job on the pitch. As I said before, the powers above them and the independent panel will decide what happens in terms of the punishment. They can only go out and play, and try to beat what's in front of them."
When quizzed by Match of the Day presenter Kelly Cates about whether he'd accept a retrospective title winners' medal, given United had finished runners-up to City during the period covered by the charges, Rooney made clear he wasn't in favour. "It's difficult," he replied. "I look at it from the players' point of view. I'm assuming all the players didn't know what was going on. They went onto the football pitch and won the league, while we finished second. We didn't finish first. Why would we want a medal for finishing second?"
Previous Podcast Remarks
Rooney had previously made no secret of his discomfort at the prospect of receiving a winners' medal. "I have heard Rio [Ferdinand] has come out saying about getting another Premier League medal... I wouldn't really feel comfortable accepting another Premier League medal, if I'm being honest," Rooney revealed on the Stick To United podcast. "I don't think we deserve it, we didn't do enough that season to win the league. I think we were six or seven points clear with four or five games to go and we threw it away."
He added: "I've seen everything that has come out over the past few days and listening to people and I was putting myself in a Man City player's shoes. It might happen, they might take them [medals] away, but I wouldn't want it [a medal] because I don't think as a team we deserved it that year because obviously we didn't finish first. So when I see team-mates saying I want a medal', I'm happy with the five I've won. I wouldn't want this one."
