Rory McIlroy has named an "under-appreciated" England legend as his favourite footballer growing up.
McIlroy became the sixth man to complete a Career Grand Slam earlier this year, with the Northern Irishman finally getting his hands on The Masters back in April, and he is now gearing up for the Ryder Cup, which is due to take place from September 26th - 28th in New York.
The 36-year-old has revealed he has knocked back the opportunity to captain Europe in the past, given the difficulties of combining that role with being a player, saying: "I've been asked to do that and I've turned it down. The idea of me being a playing captain sometime soon has come up and I've shot it down straight away.
"I don't think you can do it."
Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy reacts after holing a birdie putt on the 12th hole during the final round
Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy reacts after holing a birdie putt on the 12th hole during the final round
That said, given that the current World No. 2 is the only European player in the top five of the rankings, he will still have a huge role to play later this month.
While McIlroy ended up going to be one of the greatest ever golfers, one of his first loves growing up was football, supporting Manchester United, and he has previously described an England legend as his favourite-ever player.
Speaking on The Overlap, McIlroy said: "I loved (Wayne) Rooney, he just worked so hard and he'd run everywhere, and you just felt exhausted after watching him for 90 minutes. To be that good, but also to have that work ethic and track back when someone loses the ball or if you lose it. To me, he just looked like he loved football and I loved watching him play."
The Grand Slam winner also suggested the Manchester United legend is still underrated, saying: "It's amazing to think that, all the great stuff that he's done, you would say like under-appreciated in some way."
Rooney was a "once in a generation" player
It is perhaps surprising that McIlroy didn't opt for Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi as his favourite player, given that the Manchester United and Barcelona legends have a whopping 13 Ballon d'Ors between them.
However, Messi himself has previously made it clear just how highly he rates Rooney, saying: "Wayne Rooney is for me a once in a generation player. One of those special players, who is not comparable to any other. There are many special players, but Rooney has exceptional quality and technical ability as well as being one of the strongest players I have faced with an exceptional work rate - there is nobody like him."
The United legend won 17 trophies during his time at Old Trafford, while also amassing 120 caps for the Three Lions, second only to Peter Shilton on the all-time list, showcasing that he is undoubtedly one of the best players England has ever produced.