Wayne Rooney has revealed that he regularly went on secret two-day drinking binges at home as he struggled with the pressures of fame.
The former England and Manchester United captain said while it was common knowledge that he liked a drink, 'there was a lot more to it than just that - it was what was going on in my head'.
In a soul-baring interview with Oliver Holt, The Mail on Sunday's Chief Sports Writer, Rooney likened the anxieties that engulfed him early in his career to the build up of an 'explosion'.
At just 16 when he became a Premier League player, he says he was unprepared for life in the spotlight and suffered mental anguish.