Being the son of a famous footballer trying to make your own way in the game can never be easy.
Carrying the weight of the name on the back of the shirt only makes the task of being a top class player in your own right all the more difficult. We have seen the children of former star players follow in the footsteps of their fathers on numerous occasions, but they rarely manage to match or surpass what the previous generation has achieved.
Some more players are sure to discover this in the future, with the academies of a number of Premier League clubs currently littered with recognisable surnames.
Wayne Rooney recalls targeting son of former player
The Manchester United academy is probably the best example. It currently hosts the sons of the Cristiano Ronaldo, Nemanja Matic, Michael Carrick, and Wayne Rooney to name just a few.
Rooney's two eldest sons, Kai (12) and Klay (nine), both play as strikers in United's youth sides. The elder of the pair has even recently signed a boot deal with Puma.
In an intriguing interview in The Times, Wayne Rooney said he was unsure about his son taking part in photoshoot for the brand at such a young age. He also admitted that he has warned his kids that they are likely to be targeted on the pitch because of who their father is, just as he had done to Alex Bruce (son of Steve Bruce) early in his own career.
I wasn’t sure about him doing it — but it is part of the game and when I got into the first team at Everton I had a real shock, suddenly having to deal with all that side of it. I thought if he’s going to go down that route of wanting to be a footballer and does make it, then in advance he’s getting to know that side of things. So, that’s why we let him do it...
I have got them all together and said ‘listen, teams will want to kick you so be ready for that.’
I remember playing against Alex Bruce when I was younger and purposely wanted to boot him, because of his dad (Steve).
It’s a way to make a name for yourself. And I did — I booted him, I butted him once. We’re good friends, me and Alex, but had a lot of run-ins on the pitch. . . purely because of Steve.
Alex Bruce would win two caps for the Republic of Ireland at senior level, going on to switch to Northern Ireland in 2013 and making a couple more international appearances.
He had a long career in English football, although he never came close to matching the exploits of his father who won three league titles with Manchester United.
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