Wayne Rooney has apologised to his family and Derby County after images surfaced on social media which showed him on a night out with a group of young women.
In some of the photos, Rooney can be seen seemingly asleep on a chair in a hotel room.
It was reported on Tuesday that Rooney’s representatives contacted Cheshire Police with a complaint of blackmail.
The complaint has since been dropped by the police, who stated that Rooney said Yeshe did not wish to take the matter further.
Speaking to Sky Sports after Derby’s pre-season friendly with Real Betis on Wednesday, he apologised both to his family and his club.
He said: “I made a mistake.
“I went to a private party with two of my friends and from me, I’d like to apologise to my family and the club for the images which were going round and I want to move forward on this.
“I’m grateful to Derby County for giving me this opportunity to get this club back where it belongs, and I’ll do everything in my power to make sure I do that.
“It’s dealt with. I’m looking forward to moving forward and preparing for another game on Sunday.”
Derby short on players heading into new season
At the time of writing, Rooney is heading into the final week of pre-season preparations with just eight senior players currently available.
Derby were placed under a transfer embargo by the EFL for financial breaches earlier this year.
Under the embargo, they are allowed to sign free agents on 12-month deals, or loan signings on six-month deals, if they have under 23 players in the squad that are not of a ‘professional standing’.
That rule had to be clarified by the EFL, as the ‘professional standing’ term describes players that have made a single appearance (outside of the Papa John’s Trophy).
The Rams had to field a side made up completely of academy players in an FA Cup tie against Chorley last season because of a COVID-19 outbreak.
After a request from the club, the EFL confirmed that the players involved would not be classed as having ‘professional standing’.
As things stand, Derby can reportedly only add four players to their squad under the above criteria. The likes of Phil Jagielka, Ravel Morrison and Andre Wisdom are all on trial at Pride Park.
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