Man Utd legend Wayne Rooney and Arsenal hero Patrick Vieira to be inducted into Premier League Hall of Fame
WAYNE ROONEY and Patrick Vieira are being inducted into the Premier League’s Hall of Fame.
The pair will become the first players to be part of the Class of 2022 and a shortlist of 25 other retired stars will be announced this afternoon.
A public vote will open and, from that shortlist, six more former players will be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
Former Manchester United striker Rooney, 36, now manager of Derby, is second in the Prem's all-time scoring list with 208 goals.
He said: “It’s a huge honour for me to be named in the Premier League Hall of Fame, alongside an incredible group of players who have already been inducted.
“Growing up, I watched the Premier League as far back as I can remember.
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“My dream was always to become a professional footballer, score goals and win trophies — and I was lucky enough to win the Premier League five times.
“I have so many brilliant memories from my years playing for Everton and Manchester United and I’m really proud of what we achieved.
"To enter the Hall of Fame is very special for me and I’m grateful to be recognised.”
Vieira, 45, was captain of the Arsenal Invincibles team which did not lose a game in the 2003-04 campaign.
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The former France midfielder, who landed three Premier League titles with the Gunners, is now in charge at Crystal Palace.
He said: “Being inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame is a fantastic achievement.
“When I received the news, I thought about being a young boy playing in Senegal or Paris.
“To be with the best players in the Premier League, the best league in the world, is bigger than what I was ever thinking about.
“To have my name around those players makes me proud and makes me realise how good I was.
"I was lucky to play at the same time as some of them, including Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp.
“What really makes me happy and proud is when your name is mentioned by new, up-and-coming holding midfielders as an example of how they would like to play.”
The Class of 2021 — the first year of the awards — featured Henry, Bergkamp, Alan Shearer, Roy Keane, Eric Cantona, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and David Beckham.
Voting for the other six inductees for this year will take place at until Sunday.
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The eight new boys will be honoured at a Premier League Hall of Fame event later next month.
All receive a medallion engraved with their name and the year of their induction, with a £10,000 donation made by the Premier League to a charity of their choice.