Rooney: Ronaldo wink got me off the hook

Wayne Rooney owes a debt of gratitude to Cristiano Ronaldo for ensuring he did not shoulder the blame for England’s World Cup exit in Gelsenkirchen.

Rooney’s red card in the quarter-final defeat to Portugal was overshadowed by Ronaldo’s infamous wink, which was roundly condemned within the England camp considering the pair were Manchester United team-mates at the time.