TIMELINE

2003: Aged just 17 years and 111 days, Rooney made history by becoming England’s youngest ever player when he made his debut against Australia on February 12, 2003.

2004: He burst onto the international scene at the 2004 Euro championships in Portugal. The 18-year-old scored four goals before infamously limping off with a metatarsal injury in the early stages of the quarterfinal against the hosts.

2006: Another metatarsal injury meant Rooney faced a race against the clock to be ready in time for the 2006 World Cup. Although he returned to action for England’s second game of the tournament in Germany, it was clear he lacked full fitness and he failed to find the net. During another quarterfinal against Portugal, the forward was given a straight red card for stamping on defender Ricardo Carvalho.

2009: With regular England captain John Terry and his deputy Rio Ferdinand both unavailable, Fabio Capello confirmed Rooney would stand in as skipper for England’s friendly with Brazil in Qatar in November 2009. The Three Lions lost the match 1-0.

2010: Rooney was named in Capello’s squad for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa but failed to score once again as England under-performed. Their poor team display against Algeria was greeted with boos following the final whistle, with Rooney voicing his frustration at the poor reception his side were given.

2014: After two World Cups of disappointment for Rooney, he finally got off the mark in football’s most prestigious competition by scoring the equaliser against Uruguay in Sao Paulo. However, a late winner by Luis Suarez condemned the Three Lions to a 2-1 defeat, and with it a group stage elimination.

2015: Rooney’s late penalty against Switzerland at Wembley meant that, on his 107th appearance, he overtook Sir Bobby Charlton’s record as England’s all-time leading goalscorer. The strike was also Rooney’s 50th for his country across all competitions.

2016: England won all 10 of their qualifiers for Euro 2016, but the tournament in France would go on to be remembered as a low point in English national team‘s history. Now playing in a deep lying midfield role, Rooney started as captain in three of England’s four matches in the tournament. Despite scoring a penalty early on in the last 16 clash with Iceland, the minnows came back to win 2-1.