Rooney Honoured By Football Writers

Manchester United's all-time top goalscorer Wayne Rooney was honoured by the Football Writers' Association (FWA) at a special event in London on Sunday night.

Some of the game's finest and most established sports journalists gathered at The Savoy Hotel to pay tribute to the Reds skipper, who broke Sir Bobby Charlton's longstanding record with a last-gasp equaliser against Stoke City on Saturday - his 250th goal for the club.

This was the fifth time the writers had arranged a tribute dinner for an individual player, with Rooney following fellow United icons Ryan Giggs and David Beckham plus his former international team-mates Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard.

During his acceptance speech on stage at The Savoy, Rooney said: "I would like to thank the football writers for this prestigious award. I was looking at the list of previous award winners and it is an honour for me to be in their company.

"I'd like to say thank you to the managers I have worked with - each one has contributed to me being the player I am - and thank you to my team-mates.

"I'd also like to say a big 'thank you' to my family and to Paul Stretford who has played a huge role in my life as a friend and an agent. And I'd like to thank Jose Mourinho for giving me tomorrow off!"

Wayne was the overwhelming choice of the FWA National Committee for this year's event, thus maintaining their tradition of presenting an award to men who have made an outstanding contribution to English football. In his addition to his incredible achievements with United, he's also England's record goalscorer of course and his country's highest-capped outfield player.

Roy Hodgson, Rooney's former national-team manager, paid his own tribute when he was invited on stage shortly before the United star.

"When I met Wayne for the first time, I didn't know quite what to expect but I was really surprised to meet a man who was so keen to play football," said Hodgson.

"He has a passion and a love for the game that is second to none - he wants to be on the field, come what may. His energy and enthusiasm are two vitally important qualities.

"Off the field, he's a real family man - family means a lot to him. And he is very generous with his time, he signs every autograph that he's asked to."

Speaking to MUTV at The Savoy, Wayne said of the tribute dinner: "I'm humbled to be here and to receive this award. As a football player it's great to receive awards and to get records like I did yesterday.

"The reaction to the record has been great and I thank everyone for their messages. For people to send me messages yesterday, mostly across social media but also some private ones, was brilliant and I really appreciate them all."