Liverpool nemesis Wayne Rooney's anniversary message to Coleen receives savage comments

Wayne Rooney is almost cartoonishly perfect as a Liverpool villain. Emerging through the ranks at Everton, he went on to have a long and storied career at Manchester United, before returning to the Toffees in his autumn years.

He has occasionally endeared himself to Liverpool in the years since, siding with Steven Gerrard recently in the infamous debate involving Paul Scholes and Frank Lampard. But for the most part, he is persona non grata at Anfield.

Even so, it's a shame to see his personal life so routinely brought under the microscope, with scandals from more than a decade ago often dragged up. When he posted to Instagram about his 16th anniversary with his wife Coleen, Rooney received a string of sadly inevitable comments.

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The tabloids had a field day back in 2004, when it came to light that Rooney had visited 'massage parlors'. Just 18 at the time, he was forced to issue a statement (BBC):

"Foolish as it now seems I did on occasions visit massage parlors and prostitutes," he said. "I now regret it deeply and hope people may understand that it was the sort of mistake you make when you are young and stupid.

"It was at a time when I was very young and immature and before I had settled down with Coleen."

Subsequent scandals have followed. And Rooney was reminded of them in the comments section of his Instagram post.

In fairness, there was a high proportion of genuine well-wishers. But it doesn't take much scrolling to find some more distasteful remarks.

Despite coming to symbolize an era where Manchester United was dominant over Liverpool (thank goodness that's over), Rooney actually had a surprisingly underwhelming record against the Reds. He scored just seven times in 30 matches in all competitions, spanning his time at Everton as well. He also recorded four assists.

Just as unexpectedly, Rooney was also only on the winning side 13 times. He suffered nine defeats, with eight of his encounters against Liverpool ending in a draw. He was booked six times.

Rooney's final goal against Liverpool came in the 2017/18 season. He scored against Jurgen Klopp's side for Everton, netting from the spot in a 1-1 draw to cancel out a goal from Mohamed Salah.