Published: 00:41, 3 April 2026 | Updated: 00:42, 3 April 2026

It’s 20 years since Wayne Rooney’s metatarsal injury dominated the build-up to England’s 2006 World Cup bid in Germany. 

After a club-v-country wrangle, and much to Sir Alex Ferguson’s irritation, Rooney was passed fit for the tournament but couldn’t help Sven Goran Eriksson’s side go any further than the quarter-final against Portugal, when he was sent off for stamping on Ricardo Carvalho in Gelsenkirchen.

The Rooney saga was reported to have been the reason for Ferguson sacking Manchester United’s club doctor MIKE STONE shortly before the World Cup – but was it? Here, in his own words, Dr Stone reveals for the first time what happened in his meeting with Ferguson at Carrington, when he was dismissed on the spot.

His new autobiography Set in Stone is packed with stories from his experiences as United’s first full-time doctor during the ’99 Treble season and most successful period in the club’s history, as well as his work at the English Institute of Sport, Birmingham...