David Moyes has enjoyed over a thousand games as a manager.
After starting his career at Celtic as a young defender, he went on to have a modest playing career, before establishing himself as one of the leading British managers after starting out at Preston.
He achieved legendary status at Everton, where he worked with a young Wayne Rooney, helping him before his move to Manchester United.
There aren’t many players who make such an impact in the Premier League at 16, but then again, there aren’t many Wayne Rooneys.
During his first spell at Everton, Moyes named the ex-Celtic man who was the ‘nearest he came’ to Rooney prior to his time on Merseyside.
David Moyes on the Celtic man who was the closest he’d seen to Wayne Rooney
Moyes won two league medals in his time in Glasgow, playing with greats such as Danny McGrain, Tommy Burns and Roy Aitken.
But one man’s off-field antics were more reminiscent of the notoriously mischievous Rooney.
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In an interview revisited by Sky Sports Retro, Moyes revealed that Charlie Nicholas was the ‘closest he came’ to a young Rooney.
He said: “Wayne… when I came in, people said, ‘you’re a lucky bugger, aren’t you’. You go to a club and you end up having Wayne Rooney, how lucky are you!?’
“And I was really lucky. Because Wayne was great for me in the early years. It helped my profile, it helped Everton’s profile.
“The nearest I came to Wayne Rooney was Charlie Nicholas.
“Because Charlie Nicholas was a superstar at Celtic. Great player, a lot of similarities to Wayne in how they probably lived, and what they were like.
“Charlie will know what I’m talking about! But similarity, because the two of them were fantastic players.
“Wayne, when he was here, was an unbelievable player, and it was just as long as he did the right things, he would go on and have a long career, and would be a superstar when he was 28 and 29, as well as being a great player at 16 and 17.”
David Moyes names the Celtic man who reminded him of Wayne Rooney
The career of ex-Celtic hero Charlie Nicholas
Nicholas and Moyes are the same age, and broke through at Celtic in the same season.
Unlike Moyes however, Nicholas became a key player and quickly earned a big-money move to Arsenal, where he became a fan-favourite.
His extravagant lifestyle earned him the nickname ‘Champagne Charlie’ and he fell out of favour, eventually joining Aberdeen, where he scored against Celtic in the Scottish Cup Final penalty shootout in 1990.
That summer, he returned to Celtic Park, and despite it not being ideal timing for him or the club, scored 43 goals in 137 appearances in his second spell.
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