Wayne Rooney apologises
Wayne Rooney has issued an apology to his family after viral photos of him at a private party emerged online.
The photos appeared to show him asleep in a hotel room surrounded by a group of young women.
View this post on Instagram
In a statement to Sky Sports News, Rooney said, 'I made a mistake.'
'I went to a private party with two of my friends and from me, I'd like to apologise to my family and the club for the images which were going round and I want to move forward on this.'
View this post on Instagram
He continued, 'I'm grateful to Derby County for giving me this opportunity to get this club back to where it belongs, and I'll do everything in my power to make sure I do that.'
'It's dealt with. I'm looking forward to moving forward and preparing for another game on Sunday.'
View this post on Instagram
What happened?
The photos emerged online over the weekend, and it wasn't long before they had gone viral and Rooney was making headlines.
Cheshire Police soon confirmed in a statement to Sky News: 'On Monday 26 July Cheshire Constabulary received reports of a possible blackmail relating to a number of images circulating online.'
View this post on Instagram
'Officers have spoken to the person involved and are satisfied that no offences have taken place.'
'The person involved has also stated that they do not wish to take the matter any further.'
View this post on Instagram
Rooney's spokesperson
A spokesman for Rooney explained the situation to MailOnline, 'The three girls who took the photographs contacted Wayne's lawyers and volunteered to hand over all pictures that were taken that night and the copyrights in them.'
'They have also, at their own suggestion, made a written apology to him for the events that took place and the embarrassment caused.'
View this post on Instagram
The spokesman continued, 'These were three decent young women who went for a night out.'
'They did not expect Wayne to end up in their company and are remorseful about how things turned out with the pictures.'
'They got carried away and did something they later regretted.'
View this post on Instagram
'They have fulsomely apologised'
'They did not expect it to end up in the mainstream media after it was posted on social media and they decided to take steps to put things right.'
'It would be wrong to say no money changed hands because when a contract is drawn up there must be a sum and in this case it was a nominal £1.'
'They have fulsomely apologised because they wanted to do what they saw as the right thing and draw a line under the matter.'
View this post on Instagram
No further comment has been made.
