Rooney in bizarre boxing KO controversy

Manchester United star Wayne Rooney has found himself embroiled in a bizarre controversy after footage emerged of him purportedly 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.

The video emerged in the hours preceding United's clash against Tottenham in which Rooney made light of the incident by mimicking being KO'd while celebrating a goal.

Rooney seized the opportunity to poke fun at himself in the 34th minute when he rampaged through the Tottenham defence to fire home following a mistake by Nabil Bentaleb.

With all eyes on him, Rooney celebrated by miming a series of punches and then fell onto his back as if knocked out.

"It was me and a few friends joking around," Rooney explained after the match.

"The world we live in today, it was a few mates at a private house which has somehow managed to go to the front page of a national newspaper.

"It's more interesting for other people rather than myself.

"As you can see today, I've done a professional job. Got on with the game and glad fully helped this team win 3-0."

While Bardsley's wife Tanya has also claimed that the pair were just clowning around and that Rooney was pretending to be unconscious, speculation continues to swirl about the incident which reportedly occurred when Rooney's wife Coleen was away on holiday with their two sons.

Rooney appears to have been left out cold, arms splayed to the side and his head partially under a dining room chair.

As he lay on the ground, shocked friends rushed over before filming came to an end.

The footage could still see Rooney in hot water both with his club and with England manager Roy Hodgson and others in the Football Association's hierarchy.

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 teammates at United between 2003 and 2008, before Bardsley left Old Trafford for Sunderland and then Stoke City.