Wayne Rooney has hit back at prolonged perceptions about his intelligence, insistently that he is much more completed and trained himself than many give him the honor.
The former star of Manchester United and England, now 39, has spent a large part of his life in public interest, from his teenage breakthrough in Everton to becoming the record goalcorer of the Red Devils.
But in addition to his shimmering gaming career, Rooney often had to fight against stereotypes and assumptions about who he is outside the field.
Rooney is again in front of the cameras, only this time in a completely different light, working as an expert for the BBC's Football Highlights Show, Match of the Day.
Rooney's transition from management to broadcast comes after spells in Plymouth Argyle, Derby County, DC United and Birmingham City.
Handy spoken, he revealed that one of the most persistent misconceptions with which he is confronted is about his education.
Rooney was asked by BBC Sport: “What do people have the most wrong?”
The former three Lions captain replied: 'It's no secret that I didn't even take Gcses, but I think people assume I didn't train, which is really wrong.
'I made a conscious effort when I was at Everton and Manchester United to teach myself in many different things, such as black history and religion.
'The reason I did that was because I wanted to have conversations with my teammates who are with different backgrounds.
'That was something that I did to help my teammates and to help understand how they were raised.
“That is probably something that people don't understand about me.”
Rooney, who wore his heart on his sleeve famous during a wild career who saw him win five Premier League titles and a Champions League, also opened his softer side away from football.
Asked to share something surprising about himself, the ex -triker – often remembered because of his fearlessness on the field – admitted: 'The only thing I can think of is that I cry for everything on TV – X factor when people continue to cry.
“As a player I was pretty aggressive, but I am actually very soft.”
After his resignation by Argyle on New Year's Eve last year, Rooney entered the world of Punditry.
It is believed that he has signed a lucrative deal worth around £ 800,000 a year to participate in the competition of the day.
Rooney spoke to Talksport in June and made no secret of his pleasure of football analysis.
He seemed to show that his direct future would entail more media work than management.
The resident of Merseyside said to the radio station: 'It is clear that I was just doing some TV work at the moment, so that's what I do. I enjoy it. So that's where I will be. '