WAYNE Rooney was tonight undergoing an emergency Covid test after he was visited at home by an infected pal. Josh Bardsley, 21, presented Wayne with a luxury watch last Thursday. But Josh had already been contacted by Test and Trace and was later found positive. The unaware ex-England skipper, 34, then played for Derby on […]
WAYNE Rooney was tonight undergoing an emergency Covid test after he was visited at home by an infected pal.
Josh Bardsley, 21, presented Wayne with a luxury watch last Thursday.
But Josh had already been contacted by Test and Trace and was later found positive.
The unaware ex-England skipper, 34, then played for Derby on Friday night.
Rooney, 34, said his health, as well as his family’s and team-mates, had been jeopardised by someone acting against government guidelines.
Bardsley had delivered a luxury watch to Rooney at his mansion on Thursday.
However he had already been contacted by Test and Trace and so should have been self-isolating. He had also taken a test, which later came back positive.
Married dad-of-four Rooney was unaware and played in Derby’s 1-0 defeat at home to Watford the following evening.
His Covid scare could also quash any hopes wife Coleen had of taking the kids away for a sunshine break at half-term.
In a statement, Rooney said he only discovered his friend had been traced after being alerted by The Sun on Sunday.
A spokesman said: “Wayne met Josh Bardsley briefly when he visited Wayne’s house on Thursday.
“Wayne was not told by Josh or anyone else before or during that visit that Josh had been told to take a coronavirus test.
“Had he known Josh had been contacted by Track and Trace or had tested positive he would have refused to have seen him.
“Wayne is angry and disappointed that he, his family and his club have been put in this position by someone acting secretly and in breach of government and NHS guidelines. He is now taking a coronavirus test as a result of his contact with Josh.”
Players from Derby and Watford could also now be forced to take tests.
The ex-Manchester United and Everton striker had posed with the luxury timepiece for a photo on Bardsley’s Avant Garde Global business Instagram account.
Bardsley wrote: “Level Up… What a pleasure! Manchester United’s all-time top goalscorer. England’s all-time leading top goal scorer. Thanks for the business & enjoy.”
Rooney replied: “Nice one lads.”
Government guidelines state anyone who has been in contact with a person who has tested positive must self-isolate for 14 days.
Rooney has previously spoken of the danger of getting Covid. In March he complained that players were treated as “guinea pigs” by the authorities after games continued while other sports were stopped.
He said he would consider retiring if Coleen or any of their four kids fell ill because he had caught it through playing.
However in April he was told off by police for breaking the coronavirus lockdown with Man City star Kyle Walker.
Rooney is the latest in a long line of players to be hit by Covid.
His former Man Utd team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo was forced into self-isolation during the week after testing positive.
Ex-England star David Beckham also caught the virus following a trip to the US.
Other stars to test positive include Manchester City’s Riyad Mahrez, Ilkay Gundogan and Aymeric Laporte, Chelsea ace Callum Hudson-Odoi and PSG star Neymar.
A Department of Culture, Media and Sport spokeswoman said: “The guidance is clear that the contacts of a person who has tested positive need to self-isolate at home.”
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