Plymouth boss Wayne Rooney explains why he stays ‘calm’ as a manager despite hot-headed reputation during playing days at Man Utd

The Argyle boss maintains that he is a “very calm” manager, in an interview recorded the week after he was sent off against Blackburn. The ex-Manchester United captain was shown the red card for protesting Rovers’ late equaliser too vehemently to the fourth official. Plymouth went on to snatch victory with a 97th-minute winner.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Rooney was a notoriously hot-headed player and was sent off on no fewer than eight occasions. Perhaps the most infamous came when he was dismissed in a Euro 2004 quarter-final against Portugal, and he received his first managerial dismissal last weekend, though he maintains he has mellowed.

  • WHAT ROONEY SAID

    Rooney told Sky Sports: “I think as a manager, of course, you want to be the best you can be. Firstly, you want your players going out on the pitch and representing you, and your character and your beliefs. I think what I’ve tried to do at the clubs I’ve been at is be a possession-based team but with a purpose.

    “I think that’s important, that you’re not just passing the ball for the sake of it and you’re always trying to find ways and solutions to affect the play in the final third, I think that’s the most important part of the pitch. So I’m very calm! I’m very calm as a person and a manager which is a bit different to what I was as a player. Very affirmative as well.”

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    WHAT NEXT?

    Plymouth face Cardiff City on Saturday, October 19, but Rooney could be absent from the touchline after his red card. If he is, he will likely return to the bench against Millwall in midweek.