WAYNE ROONEY had to go to dinner with two Manchester City stars – just hours after the 6-1 derby thumping.
Rooney played the full 90 minutes of the humiliating defeat in October 2011.
Roberto Mancini’s City ran riot at Old Trafford with Mario Balotelli getting the visitors’ party started before revealing his iconic ‘Why Always Me?’ undershirt.
But the full-time whistle was not the end of the torment for Rooney – because he had to spend the evening with England pals Joe Hart and Gareth Barry at Coleen’s birthday party.
The Manchester United record goalscorer said: “City won 6-1 at Old Trafford on a day when we had Jonny Evans sent off, they took all their chances, and everything went for them.
“It was the game when you really thought, ‘These could challenge and have a go.’
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“It was horrible. It was actually my wife’s birthday and we had booked Wing’s restaurant in central Manchester for a party that night.
“Neither of us expected getting beaten 6-1.
“Gareth Barry and Joe Hart were invited and the last thing I wanted to do was go out or do anything — especially not hang around with two City players, even if both are mates.
“In hindsight, maybe I should have cancelled but lots of people were coming and it felt difficult to do that. So I went. And it was uncomfortable. Not the best night.”
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Rooney – who has the record with 11 Manchester derby goals – does not believe being friends with players at other clubs is a problem, despite the perception from fans.
He added to the Sunday Times: “People have this idea that players from rival sides cannot be friends with each other, and you hear of England camps before my time where United players sat on one table, Liverpool players on another, Arsenal players on another and so on. But it was never like that in my day.
“Gareth, Joe and I were good friends — I even went to Barbados on holiday with Joe — and Kyle Walker has been my neighbour for years, going back to when we played against each other.
“We’re very good friends. His kids and my kids are friends. They’re always in each others’ houses.
“It was similar in Merseyside, where despite our allegiances I was always close to Stevie Gerrard and spoke to Jamie Carragher quite a bit.
“However, when you’re on the pitch, the tackles fly in and you really want to beat each other, and Joe enjoyed another massive win when City beat us 1-0 at the Etihad, in the return match in 2011-12.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
