WAYNE ROONEY is returning home to England and his family – and will be living in his £20million “Morrisons mansion” that has a full-size football pitch, two fishing lakes, cinema and a pool.
The Manchester United and England legend has just been named as the new manager of Birmingham City and replaces the axed John Eustace at St Andrews.
He will be joined at Brum by Arsenal and Chelsea icon Ashley Cole and former United team-mate John O’Shea who will be working alongside him as coaches.
Rooney left MLS side DC United at the weekend after they failed to make the play-offs.
He had been living with his coaching staff in Washington while wife Coleen and their four sons, Kai, Klay, Kit and Cass remained in England.
However, after joining the Tom Brady-backed Blues he will be getting all the support he needs from his family as he returns home to join them full-time at their lavish Cheshire mansion.
Rooney, 37, and Coleen, also 37, boast a sizeable property portfolio, including homes in Florida, USA, the Caribbean and across the UK.
But the jewel in the crown is their six-bedroom £20m palatial house which sits on a 40-acre piece of land.
Built from scratch, the family moved in in December 2021.
It is said to be located in Cheshire and is named High Lake Manor.
Rooney and his partner could even technically call themselves the lord and lady of the manor.
We revealed back in its development how United’s all-time top scorer had a full-size football pitch installed at the property and it comes complete with a seating area.
The five-a-side pitch even boasts changing rooms with showers for his mates – although he was blocked from installing floodlights because of his mansion’s rural location.
He also boasts a garage for his collection of cars, a cinema, swimming pool, and even two man-made fishing lakes.
Rooney is thought to be a keen angler.
The house had been previously mocked for looking like a Morrisons supermarket by neighbours due to its size and architecture.
But, unlike a Morrisons, it now boasts an orangery, bar, TV room, snooker room, cinema and wine cellar.
And the luxury Rooney pad also has a huge indoor swimming pool surrounded by a glass pavilion, a hot tub, plunge pool, steam room and “his” and “hers” changing rooms.
But that is not all – it boasts an extensive patio, landscaped gardens and a luxury car garage.
Rooney is believed to have paid over £4m to a Cheshire property developer to build the mansion, which also has a guest toilet and separate lifts.
That second lift also connects the main space to the basement floor, which sports a sprawling gym, pool, Jacuzzi and cinema room.
The decision to build their dream pad came after raiders tried to break into Rooney’s Cheshire home in 2016 before cops pounced.
The ex-striker grew up in a council house in Liverpool – but he has shown off his real estate skills with his sprawling Barbados villa, which he rents out for £25,000 a week.
He snapped up a £320,000 waterfront apartment in the Sunshine State of Florida in 2007 and splashed out £450,000 on a detached home in Liverpool for his parents to live in.
Now he and Coleen, who are believed to be worth around £115m, own properties across the globe after getting together aged 16.
Rooney burst through the ranks at boyhood club Everton as a teenager and starred for England at Euro 2004 before a big-money move to Manchester United.
Under Sir Alex Ferguson he went on to lift the Champions League and the Premier League title five times.
Rooney surpassed Sir Bobby Charlton’s record for both United and England to become the record goalscorer for club and country – the latter now being overtaken by Harry Kane.
He made an emotional return to Everton in 2017 and finished that season as their top scorer before moving to the MLS to sign for DC United.
The then veteran bagged 23 goals in 48 matches for the American side but headed back to England to join Championship club Derby County in the 2020/21 season in a surprise move.
Rooney then retired from playing to take over as manager when the Rams were rock bottom of the table.
He guided them to safety but resigned at the end of the following campaign after Derby were relegated to League One following a huge points deduction and returned to become boss at DC United.
Rooney was in charge for 52 games, racking up just 13 wins and 26 defeats, before his departure but will now be tasked with guiding Birmingham back to the big time under their new American owners.
After being announced as manager, Rooney said: “I am absolutely delighted to be joining Birmingham City football club at such an exciting time.
“It is very clear that they have a plan and are committed to realising their ambition for the club. We are fully aligned on what is expected.
“I have been building my managerial career, putting myself in challenging environments, to get me ready for this opportunity.
“It’s a project that gives me a sense of purpose and I can’t wait to get started.”
