Wayne Rooney has revealed the difficulty he had adapting to life as a Premier League superstar, which led to locking himself away to drink and "raging" on the football pitch.
Rooney, Manchester United and England's record goalscorer, is releasing a documentary on Amazon Prime.
And the now Derby County manager has discussed all aspects of his career, including how he struggled to deal with the pressure of playing for United.
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Rooney said becoming a top player at a young age was "something I wasn't prepared for" after growing up in his council estate in Croxteth, "always getting into fights and arguments".
"It took a long time for me to get used to that and figure out how to deal with it," Rooney told the newspaper. "It was like being thrown in somewhere where you are just not comfortable. That was tough for me.
"I had made a lot of mistakes when I was younger, some in the press and some not in the press, whether that's fighting or whatever.
"For me to deal with that, deal with stuff that was in the newspapers, deal with the manager at the time, deal with family at the time, was very difficult.
"In my early years at Manchester United, probably until we had my first son, Kai, I locked myself away really. I never went out.
"There were times you'd get a couple of days off from football and I would actually lock myself away and just drink, to try to take all that away from my mind."
On the pitch, it meant playing with anger – although Rooney suggests that made him a better player.
"Early on in my career, I played with a lot more anger and picked up the odd red card," he said. "The anger was all the time when I was drinking, when I was having these moments. Still constantly in my head, I was raging.
"When I learned to control it, it took that away from me. It was almost as if being right in my head took a bit away from my game. Not being right in my head gave me that added unpredictability."
Yet one notable example of a costly red card saw Rooney sent off for England in a World Cup quarter-final against Portugal, which ended in defeat on penalties.
United team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo played a prominent role in appealing for Rooney's dismissal – for stamping on Ricardo Carvalho – and was famously then caught on camera winking to the Portugal bench.
While that incident prompted plenty of discussion as they returned to United, Rooney says: "After I was sent off in the World Cup quarter-final against Portugal and we lost on penalties, I got Ronaldo out into the tunnel.
"I said: 'Listen, you're going to get a lot of stick from the press, I'm going to get a lot of stick from the press, my focus now is on Man United. There is no issue with me whatsoever, I would have done exactly the same trying to get England a win against Portugal and this is a big year for us and we have every chance of winning the league.'
"My attention, once we were out, completely flipped back to Manchester United.
"There was never any issue. I actually tried to get him booked in the first half for diving. I'm playing for England, he's playing for Portugal, do whatever you can to win."
Erik Ten Hag says reaction to Manchester United’s FA Cup win was ’embarrassing’
Erik Ten Hag has branded the reaction to Manchester United’s FA Cup semi-final victory over Coventry “embarrassing” and “a disgrace”.
Having let slip a 3-0 lead at Wembley with 20 minutes to go and then won on penalties after the Championship side had an extra-time goal disallowed for a marginal offside, United were heavily criticised by pundits and fans alike despite making it back-to-back finals.
Ten Hag met a question about whether he understood the response at a press conference ahead of Wednesday’s clash against Sheffield United with a feisty response, saying: “No, absolutely not.
“The question: ‘Is it embarrassing?’ No, the reaction from you was embarrassing. It is the comments. Top football is about results, we made it to a final and we deserved it not only by this game but also the other games.
“We lost control for 20 minutes, we also had bad luck, 3-2, 3-3. We were very lucky in the end, clear. Penalties was very good and we made it to the final, it is a huge achievement. Twice in two years is magnificent.
“For me as a manager, four cup finals in four years. The comments are a disgrace.”
Antony has come in for particular criticism after he cupped his ear with his hand in a mocking gesture towards the Coventry players when Rasmus Hojlund netted the winning penalty.
Ten Hag accepted Antony was wrong but claimed he was provoked, saying: “That’s why, this was a reaction of that, you haven’t seen the provocation, only the reaction. But he should not do it.
“I have seen Harry Maguire straight after and others, we should acknowledge the performance of Coventry to come into that…and the comeback. Also see we are 70 minutes totally dominating the game by far and creating many chances.
“At 3-0 it must have been the game is closed but the return from their side was very good.”
The collapse added further intensity to the spotlight on Ten Hag’s position, and on Friday United announced that Jason Wilcox had left Southampton with immediate effect to become their new technical director.
Ten Hag said he was looking forward to working very closely with the former winger, adding: “We have to form a partnership, it’s very important. We are a little behind in the process so we have to catch up, so we will go and speed up the process.
“I met him yesterday for the first time, we had some talks. This week we will not have so much time but from Monday on we will go forward.
“Of course I know his profile, I know his methods in youth, a lot of experience there and then one year at Southampton. I know his background so I am looking forward to our partnership.”
United’s injury crisis continued at Wembley, with Alejandro Garnacho, Marcus Rashford, Scott McTominay and Bruno Fernandes all picking up problems.
McTominay and Rashford are both doubtful for Wednesday but Ten Hag expects Garnacho and Fernandes to be able to play.
Football rumours: Five clubs in the race to sign Crystal Palace’s Michael Olise
What the papers say
Five clubs are in the race to sign Crystal Palace forward Michael Olise, Football Insider reports, with Arsenal and Manchester United joining Manchester City, Juventus and Chelsea. The 22-year-old has scored seven goals in 14 games for Palace this season.
The Sun says Barcelona have joined Arsenal in the fight for Newcastle striker Alexander Isak with the Spanish club hoping to strike a deal with the Magpies for a player reported to be valued at around £90million. The 24-year-old Sweden international has scored 17 goals in 24 Premier League games for Newcastle this season.
Meanwhile, the credentials of Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag will be assessed by new technical director Jason Wilcox as the club decides on the Dutchman’s future, according to the Telegraph, while the same outlet says former Wolvers manager Julen Lopetegui is a contender to replace David Moyes at West Ham.
Social media round-upPlayers to watch
Viktor Gyokeres: The 25-year-old Sporting Lisbon striker is Arsenal’s top target as the Gunners prepare to make several signings this summer, Football Transfers reports.
Wilfred Ndidi: Crystal Palace are interested in the Leicester midfielder who is available for a free transfer this summer, according to Talksport.
Inter Milan beat rivals AC Milan to secure 20th Serie A title
Inter Milan claimed their second Serie A title in four seasons after beating AC Milan 2-1 at San Siro.
Goals from Francesco Acerbi and Marcus Thuram gave Inter the three points they required to be crowned champions, although they had to endure a nervous final 10 minutes after Fikayo Tomori pulled a goal back for the home team.
Inter wrapped up the title with five games to spare, standing 17 points clear of their city rivals, who needed a win or draw to delay celebrations.
But they were on the back foot after Acerbi’s 18th-minute header opened the scoring, before Thuram’s shot early in the second half put Inter well on the way to securing a 20th league crown.
Tomori’s effort set up a tense finish, though, in an ill-tempered clash, and there were red cards for Inter’s Denzel Dumfries and two AC Milan players – Theo Hernandez and Davide Calabria – during stoppage time.
Bologna, meanwhile, stayed firmly on course for Champions League qualification by beating Roma 3-1 at the Stadio Olimpico.
Bologna moved just two points behind third-placed Juventus – and seven clear of Roma in fifth – following a dominant display.
Oussama El Azzouzi opened the scoring after 14 minutes, and Joshua Zirkzee doubled the lead with a left-footed shot on the stroke of half-time.
Roma gave themselves a lifeline when Sardar Azmoun netted after the break, but Bologna kept the upper hand and sealed all three points through Alexis Saelemaekers’ goal midway through the second period.
And in Spain’s LaLiga, second-half goals from Youssef En-Nesyri and Isaac Romero delivered a 2-1 home victory for Sevilla over Mallorca, with Abdon Prats claiming a late consolation for the visitors.
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