There will be an intriguing clash in the English EFL Championship today with two teams managed by former footballers going against each other. Wayne Rooney’s Derby County and Lee Bowyer’s Birmingham City. Their two teams are enduring a troubled season, just like the two men have been in the media limelight for things other than their footballing ability.Much has been said about Rooney this year. The former Everton and Manchester United man is on a nearly impossible mission of saving Derby from relegation despite their crippling 21-point deduction. And, even though the Rams are still in the drop zone, you can argue that the former England international has been doing a decent job. They are off the bottom and a manageable eight points off safety.In other news… Wayne Rooney breathes a sigh of relief as the media are talking about #Millwall fans booing players rather than their chants about his obsession with older prostitutes 🤣🤣🤣 pic.twitter.com/c72xrvmFhu— Ayse Smith (@Ayse_Smith) December 6, 2020 Rooney has also rejected a recent approach from former club Everton to take over at manager at Goodison Park, claiming that he’s still got a job to do in Derby. This act of loyalty and dedication endeared him further to the Rams’ worried fanbase, but there was a time when such values weren’t associated with the native of Liverpool. When he was only 16 years old and only breaking through at Everton, Wayne was visiting local brothels regularly. Much was said and written about his sexual escapades in 2002. When the stories made the news, it was like an avalanche in the newspapers. Everyone wanted to know what’s the talented footballer had done, who with, when, how much etc. Reports of Rooney’s misadventures with women and alcohol became as prominent as his goals on the pitch.”Foolish as it now seems I did on occasions visit massage parlours and prostitutes. I now regret it deeply and hope people may understand that it was the sort of mistake you make when you are young and stupid. It was at a time when I was very young and immature.”But his immaturity didn’t end there. In the years that followed, reports of Rooney’s adultery, encounters with prostitutes, drunken nights out would follow him during his two-decades-long career. His achievements on the pitch were still immense, which begs the question of how much better he could have been had his lifestyle been more suited to a top athlete. We’ll never know.Bowyer and Rooney in 2005 (©Gallo Images)And what can you say about Lee Bowyer? Although his playing career wasn’t nearly as successful as Rooney’s, he was still regarded as one of the best players in England at the start of the century. He was once the most expensive teenager in British football when he moved from Charlton Athletic to Leeds United in 1996. But apart from being lauded as a talented midfielder, he was also fighting in the streets, drinking and beating up Asian students just because their skin was of a different colour. It was an incident that still haunts Bowyer, who’s had to convince the public many times that he’s not a racist.
But that event wasn’t Bowyer’s darkest moment. In 2005, when he was playing for Newcastle United, he got into a fight with teammate Kieron Dyer – during a Premier League match! The two men were arguing for much of the match, and with their team trailing heavily to Aston Villa, their harsh words turned into punches in the middle of the park with more than 52,000 supporters watching from the stands in disbelief. Bowyer had two spells with West Ham before he eventually became a Birmingham City player in 2009. The Blues fans weren’t happy with the signing of the “bad boy” and protested the decision. If only they knew that the same Lee Bowyer would become the manager of their club some 12 years later! We won’t talk about his violent conduct on the pitch, stomping on opponents, arguing with officials, abusing fans and stuff like that because this story would go on for far too long. It was about time that these two guys grew up and showed some maturity. But somehow, our experience tells us that you can never rule out either of them doing something stupid and creating more bad publicity for themselves. Hopefully not today, though!EFL CHAMPIONSHIPSunday16.30: (2.50) Derby (2.95) Birmingham (3.20)19.00: (3.20) Cardiff (3.10) Nott.Forest (2.40)Tuesday22.45: (2.60) Swansea (3.05) Luton (2.90)22.45: (2.40) Millwall (3.10) Preston (3.20)***odds are subject to change