Wayne Rooney says, I'm actually very quiet and shy

Wayne Rooney has revealed he considers himself a shy person but warned he will never change his ultra-competitive approach to football on the pitch.

The Manchester United and England forward insists he does not have a problem with his temperament because he always feels in control of his emotions.

Rooney told Sunday Mirror Sport: "I do get stuck in during matches, but I like to think that I keep calm both on the pitch and off it."

Rooney had his name cleared after a UEFA investigation into his clash with Aalborg defender Kasper Risgaard this month.

And there were claims he threw his elbow at Stoke's Abdoulaye Faye in United's Boxing Day victory. But the man who scored the goal that made United world club champions last week revealed: "People who know me will tell you that I am a quiet and shy person at heart.

"In real life I am the complete opposite of the image that some people have of me."

Rooney refuses to accept the popular perception that he is a flawed genius.

In a remarkable and revealing interview with Sunday Mirror Sport, the Manchester United striker insisted he is in full control of both his talent and his temperament.

His month began with UEFA launching an investigation into an alleged stamp on Aalborg defender Kasper Risgaard.

It ended with the 23-year-old having his name cleared and his reputation enhanced by scoring the goal that made United club champions of the world.

And when Rooney explains the unique pressures that he has been forced to live under since the age of 16, it is easy to understand why he feels that he is more sinned against than sinning.

Rooney said: "I don't need anyone telling me how to behave or how to live my life as a professional footballer.

"I know when I am doing things the right way and I know when I've got things wrong.

"I don't think there is a problem with my temperament. I don't accept that I need to learn to count to 10 in certain situations because I always feel in control of myself.

"I do get stuck in during matches, but I like to think that I keep calm both on the pitch and off it.

"It's people who don't know me who like to have a go at me. But I don't give them a moment's thought because they're just not important to me.

"I wouldn't like to let my family or my friends down and as long as they're proud of me that's all that matters.

"People who know me will tell you that I am a quiet and shy person at heart.

"In real life I am the complete opposite of the image that some people have of me."

Rooney added: "Sure, I am a very competitive person.

"I'm a player with lots of energy and aggression and I am never going to stop putting in tackles.

"That's who I am. I can't change that, I don't want to change it, and I don't think the managers I play for would want to take that away from my game either.

"I know some people were looking to blame me for the incident against Aalborg.

"All I can say is that it was 100 per cent right that UEFA didn't take any action against me.

"I wasn't being aggressive. I didn't mean to stamp on the fella and it was right that no punishment was handed down."

Rooney's rise from Croxteth schoolboy to £30million footballer was meteoric.

Within months of leaving school he was realising his ambition of playing for boyhood heroes Everton.

At 17 he was an England international and a year later on his way to Manchester.

Rooney said: "People forget that I am still quite young. I have been put under the spotlight ever since I broke into the Everton first team at 16.

"Even then there was a tendency to try to find fault with my temperament rather than concentrate on what I was bringing to the game.

"That's sad, but I suppose it is part of football. It doesn't matter if you are only 16 or 18 and still learning about life, as soon as you become a Premier League footballer you are immediately under the spotlight.

"Sometimes it doesn't work out. There are occasions when you do make mistakes and you do step out of line, but you learn from these experiences and you eventually learn how to deal with the criticism."

He added: "I get the feeling sometimes that people just look for the negatives with me.

"When I was 18 I couldn't understand why people wanted to highlight my faults.

"It used to get to me, but I have just learned to deal with it.

"All I've ever wanted to do was play football, win games and win major trophies."

"Winning the Club World Cup has made it the perfect end to a perfect year, but I want more.

"We all do."

sport@sundaymirror.co.uk