Football: Rooney floored in kitchen boxing match

Manchester United star Wayne Rooney has found himself embroiled in a bizarre incident after footage emerged of him being knocked out by former teammate Phil Bardsley in an impromptu boxing match in his kitchen.

Rooney was sent sprawling in his home after Bardsley caught him with a left jab as they indulged in a friendly sparring bout.

The 29-year-old England skipper is seen falling to the floor and appears to hit his head with a thud as he lands heavily on the ground.

Click here to see the video

He was left apparently out cold, arms splayed to the side and his head partially under a dining room chair. As he lay unconscious, shocked friends rushed over before filming came to an end.

The tussle could have left Rooney with serious injuries and is unlikely to have impressed his boss at Manchester United, Louis van Gaal.

Rooney, capped 101 times by his country, and Bardsley, 29, were team-mates at United between 2003 and 2008, before Bardsley left Old Trafford for Sunderland and then Stoke City.

The Sun newspaper, which obtained the video, said the incident happened on February 22, when it claimed Rooney's wife Coleen was away on holiday with their two sons.

Meanwhile, Rooney scored a superb solo goal in Manchester United's 3-0 win over Tottenham this morning (NZT), and celebrated by throwing some shadow punches and falling to the ground as if he were knocked out.

Best goal celebration, what a lad “@NOT_MOTD: Rooney’s celebration😂 http://t.co/SglkC4DZnW”

— Professor Green (@professorgreen) March 15, 2015

Rooney didn't seem to bothered by the Bardsley incident, saying: "It's what friends do - they mess around in the house. It was a couple of mates in a private house, and somehow it's managed to get on the front page of a national newspaper."

- AAP