Wayne Rooney insisted on Monday that he was "the best of pals with Michael Owen," saying stories of a rift between himself and his England strike partner were "completely without foundation" after tabloid newspaper reports said the duo had fallen out over the Manchester United star's alleged £700,000 (US$1.2 million) gambling debt.
Rooney's debt was said to have accrued with a bookmaker introduced to him and other members of the England squad by Owen, weekend newspaper reports said.
Sources close to Rooney have said the player is now furious with Owen for putting him in touch with bookmaker Steve Smith, who is a business associate of the Newcastle player.
But a spokesman for Rooney, and his management company Proactive Sports Management, has denied the claims.
"Any suggestion of a rift or a dispute between Wayne and Michael are completely without foundation as far as Wayne is concerned. Wayne and Michael remain the best of pals," the spokesman said.
Owen introduced Rooney and other England squad members to Smith after becoming tired of running the team gambling school, reports said.
Up until that point, Owen took the bets but recruited Smith to take care of matters when the sums of money being wagered became too large.
Smith set up a private bookmakers called Goldchip Ltd to handle the bets which only received its gambling licence last week. Prior to that Smith was reported to have acted as a betting agent for the players.
Smith insisted he had not been operating illegally.
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