SCHOOL OF Burnley star on his wife’s reality TV fame, helping out behind the bar, getting a telling off from Fergie and his plans to fight old pal Rooney... in Vegas!
PHIL BARDSLEY’S wife is a reality TV star – but the Burnley defender reckons he is only playing in the Premier League because he has never forgotten his roots.
Whether he is helping to collect empty glasses in the Salford social club run by his parents or getting a blast of Sir Alex Ferguson’s infamous “hairdryer”, the 34-year-old full-back takes pride in still being a little rough around the edges.
In some ways, Bardsley believes not getting away from the tough terraced streets of his youth may have held him back when he was a teenager living the dream of playing for Manchester United.
But he also feels that the life lessons he learned on a journey that has also taken him to Antwerp, Rangers, Aston Villa, Sheffield United, Sunderland and Stoke have made him a better man.
“I’ve had a decent career, played at the highest level for a long time and, hopefully, I can continue doing that,” said Bardsley, who is determined to help keep the Clarets in the top flight and earn himself a new contract.
“But I do look back at my younger days at United and think about what might have happened if I had made a few different lifestyle choices.
“Life’s what it is, isn’t it? I think I’ve learned from my mistakes because I wouldn’t still be playing in the Premier League if I hadn’t.
“I got into a few fights and scrapes. Fergie always found out and I was dragged into his office one or two times. He was always fair with me.
“But I saw him 18 months ago and he still gave me a b ****** ing for not having a shave. I was walking down the street and suddenly a big, black Merc pulled up. He rolled his window down and he shouted, ‘What have I told you son? Have a f **** ing shave!’
“I was 33 at the time, just stood there trying to cross the road, and I’ve just had a b ****** ing from the gaffer. Unbelievable!”
Bardsley believes the rollockings he got from Ferguson (above) and Roy
Keane were motivated by tough love. “I once asked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer why Roy kept having a go at me in training,” he said. “Ole told me that the day he didn’t have a pop was when I should worry.
“It was because he cared about me – and he did later sign me for Sunderland. But I still surround myself with the same people and I don’t think I have changed. I’m just a bit older and wiser.
“My mum and dad have still got the club in
Lower Kersal. I used to help out behind the bar and collect glasses every now and then. And I know I can go in there because no one really cares who I am.”
Bardsley’s profile would be much higher if he took up offers from the producers of reality TV show The Real Housewives of Cheshire to spend more time in front of the camera with his wife Tanya (below) and their four children.
“My missus gets recognised a lot more than I do,” he said. “But that means I can just enjoy having a drink while she deals with all the attention.
“Tanya has done great off the show and I’m so proud of her. They’re always pressing me to get involved, but it isn’t my scene.”
Bardsley has his coaching badges for when he has to hang up his boots. And pre-season boxing training has kept him in top physical condition.
He showed he packs a hell of a punch when a sparring session in Wayne Rooney’s kitchen infamously ended with his old pal being knocked out cold.
“We used to knock **** out of each other all the time,” said Bardsley, before a joke that could really make the world’s promoters start thinking.
“We’re getting ready to go again when we retire.
“We’re in negotiations with
Eddie Hearn. I want it at the MGM in Vegas or maybe New York.”