Wayne Rooney has revealed exactly what his eldest son Kai told him about Arsenal starlet Max Dowman after playing against him for the first time. Dowman made history by becoming the second-youngest player in Premier League history when he came off the bench against Leeds during the Gunners' 5-0 win on Saturday. He even went on to have an impact on the game, winning a stoppage-time penalty which was converted by Viktor Gyokeres.
His impressive cameo has only added to the allure that surrounds the teenager, who is tipped to go to the very top, much like Rooney was when he first broke into Everton's team. And the former striker has detailed a conversation he had with his son about the talented Dowman.
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Speaking on the 'Wayne Rooney Show' for the BBC, the England icon was analysing the 15-year-old's impact off the bench before detailing a conversation he had with his son after Kai had come up against Dowman at youth level.
"We were watching the Arsenal game and Dowman comes on. Kai's played against him and I asked, 'Is he your age?' Kai said, 'Yeah.' Kai's two months older than him. It's actually crazy that he's playing first-team football in the Premier League.
"He just said, 'You can see he's a top player.' And that's what you say to any young player: work hard and you never know. Sometimes you could be playing in the under-15s and the next you're playing under-18s or the Premier League. From the looks of it, Max Dowman seems like a very level-headed lad from what I've seen, and you hope he manages to deal with it."
Despite being the elder of the two teenagers, Rooney junior has not yet graduated to the first-team at Manchester United. However, he has been promoted to the under-18s at the club, scoring in his second appearance at that level.
Rooney himself knows a thing or two about what it is like to break into the Premier League at such a young age, and also revealed how surreal it was.
"One minute you're in the youth team, the next you're in the first team dressing room," United's record goalscorer explained.
"And for me, some of my heroes growing up, I'm in there training and playing with. Becoming friends with.
"I was around Duncan Ferguson's house. He lived down the same road as me. Chilling with Alan Stubbs. And you're like 'what is going on here?"
While that may have been Rooney's experience, Dowman won't be allowed into the first-team dressing room at Arsenal just yet, with the forward still having his GCSE's to worry about next summer.