09 October 2023 , 14:15
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Nottingham Forest star Morgan Gibbs-White has admitted he grew up supporting Manchester United and idolised Wayne Rooney and Paul Scholes.
In an interview with the Premier League, Gibbs-White revealed his "love for football" came from watching United when he was younger with Rooney and Scholes among his favourite players. "Growing up as a kid, I supported United so Rooney was always my favourite player," he said.
"He was the real key player in that squad, so calm and composed. He used to pick up pockets, run in behind, score goals. Another player when I was growing up that I loved watching was Paul Scholes.
"He could pick the ball up and just zing it everywhere. He was just so calm and composed on the ball. That's where my love for football came (from)." The 23-year-old has previously revealed he tried to model his game on Rooney's and was "too nervous" to go up and speak to him when he was Derby boss and Gibbs-White was on loan at Sheffield United.
"I was too nervous to go and say hello," he told the Daily Mail last year. "I grew up idolising him so to see him in the flesh was a bit like, 'Woah'. As a kid I loved United and I always watched Rooney. I really enjoyed the sort of player he was: hard-working, gritty, didn't care who was in front of him, he was going through them.
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"He scored goals, set them up. He wore No 10 and I've often played in that position, so I was buzzing to be offered the shirt when I joined Forest." Forest broke their transfer record to sign Gibbs-White from Wolves last summer for an initial £25m plus add-ons and he was subsequently named their player of the season after producing 13 goal involvements in the Premier League.
He then followed up his impressive campaign by helping England win the under-21 Euros this summer. And Forest boss Steve Cooper has previously tipped Gibbs-White to earn senior honours sooner rather than later. "I know he'd love to go and make the final step with England," Cooper said earlier this year.
Gibbs-White idolised Wayne Rooney and Paul Scholes when he was growing up (Getty Images)"But he's only going to do that by doing what he's been doing for us. You can improve naturally through playing - that's so important for young players - to get as many games as they can. There's been a brilliant commitment to games and the delivery of performances and, at times, they've been eye-catching, haven't they?
"There have been moments when he's really excelled. What he's done - everyone knows his obvious strength in terms of his risk-taking and his wanting to do something with the ball. He's also added a real maturity to his game and an understanding of the defending side - he's always worked hard.
"But he's worked smart as well without the ball - he understands different tactical roles too, that he maybe needs to do something a little different tactically for the team. Then he has more success by doing what we want him to do. So, he's definitely grown. But the best thing is that there is so much more to come - that's the exciting bit."