“He was hitting me in the ribs:” United legend spills the beans on wild meal with boxing superstar

Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney is an idol for thousands of fans around the world after his trophy-laden spell at Old Trafford, which ended with him leaving as the club’s highest-ever goalscorer. Yet, even with his fame and fortune, Rooney has plenty of idols of his own and recently revealed details of an encounter with one of his boxing heroes. Former heavyweight champion of the world Mike Tyson enjoyed some time with Rooney during his playing days, with the sporting legends meeting up in Manchester over dinner. Feeling the force Speaking on his BBC Podcast, Rooney opened about the meeting that left him “in awe” of the self-proclaimed ‘Baddest Man on the Planet’, as reported by the Express. “I was lucky enough to meet him. I went for food with him in Manchester. I was just in awe of him really. You see him and his presence. You could still see that edge was there,” he said. So much so that Tyson was playfully hitting Rooney in the ribs during the dinner, leaving the former England international feeling the force of ‘Iron Mike’. “As I was sat there, he leaned back and he was hitting me in the ribs. In the end, I’m sitting there eating my food and I’m like: ‘Okay mate, okay mate, leave it there now’,” he said Rooney’s humorous story included an anecdote about Tyson stealing a steak from another dinner guest, adding stock to the perception of Tyson’s rather bizarre personality. Rooney’s own knockout blow Rooney has always held a keen interest in the sport, with his dad running his own boxing gym in Liverpool whilst Rooney was at Everton’s academy. However, his ability to take a punch was on show for all to see after a video of himself exchanging punches with Phil Bardsley went viral before a United game. The former teammates were playfully shadow boxing in a kitchen, with Bardsley landing a blow on the United man, who dropped to the floor in a heap. The video surfaced the night before a crucial visit of Tottenham Hotspur to Old Trafford, with Louis van Gaal, United’s boss at the time, questioned on whether Rooney was fit to play the game. Rooney has since revealed that Van Gaal laughed the video off in a private meeting, and United’s number ten went on to play a starring role in a punch-perfect 3-0 win. Rooney rounded off the scoring on the day, bursting through the Tottenham Hotspur defence before slotting past Hugo Lloris and then shadow boxed in front of the home faithful before falling to the floor, recreating the viral clip. United finished the day in second place after that win, and Michael Carrick’s side have an outside chance of ending this season in the same position should they produce a near-perfect end to the current campaign. Leeds United visit Old Trafford next Monday as United start their seven-game run-in that will determine whether or not they achieve their goal of qualifying for next year’s Champions League. The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Conner Botterill Conner Botterill has been with The Peoples Person for three years. A keen match-going red with degrees in Sport and Journalism and Philosophy and Psychology through the Open University. His favourite match attended was the Champions League victory in Paris under one the guidance of one of his idols, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Conner still believes he has a chance of making United’s first team through his 5-a-side career.