Former Birmingham City manager Wayne Rooney was sidelined from his debut appearance on BBC's Match of the Day due to an unforeseen injury.
The former England and Manchester United captain spent 15 games in charge of Birmingham before being sacked this January. Rooney's short spell at St Andrew's followed managerial roles at Derby County and DC United, and the question of what comes next for the 38-year-old has been a subject of much speculation.
It appears Rooney chosen to test the waters of punditry, often spotted contributing to Premier League Productions' take on the English top flight. Rooney was scheduled to be a guest pundit on Match of the Day on 13th April, with one of his former clubs, Man United, drawing 2-2 at Bournemouth earlier in the day. However, a sudden and painful injury forced him to bow out at the last minute.
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At 9:53pm on Saturday night, a disappointed Rooney took to X to share his condition: "Gutted not to be making my debut on the iconic @BBCMOTD show tonight, it's something I have wanted to do since I was little."
He further explained: "Unfortunately I have sustained a painful back injury during a holiday with my family but I look forward to being part of the team in the near future. Good luck to @GaryLineker and the guys for tonight's show and see you soon."
In Rooney's absence, ex-pros Martin Keown and Micah Richards featured on the show along with host Gary Lineker. The official Match of the Day X Twitter account responded to Rooney's initial tweet, saying: "Looking forward to having you on soon." MOTD host Lineker also took to X to reply to Rooney's message, adding: "They’ll be other opportunities. Get fit soon."
Rooney was parachuted into the Birmingham hotseat in early October 2023 on a three-and-a-half-year contract. The former Three Lions skipper was sacked in January 2024 after winning just two of his 15 games in charge, leaving with a win percentage rate of 13.3% with the Blues locked in a relegation battle.
Birmingham's 3-0 home win against Coventry on Saturday kept their survival hopes alive, lifting the Blues a point above the relegation zone with three games of the season remaining. City manager Gary Rowett told BBC Radio WM of the result: "I think it had a little bit of everything. That was the nice bit about it. We spoke a few home truths after Wednesday [losing 1-0 at home to Cardiff City], and in fairness, it was the players that mainly led that.
"What I tried to do today is pick a team that I felt would go and put that out onto the pitch. We limited them to very few clear-cut chances. It allows us to then go and show the quality we have got in the final third."
