A look back at Wayne Rooney's tenure as Derby County manager
The former Manchester United striker shockingly departed Pride Park on Friday, says Rams need 'fresh energy'
For the longest time it seemed the most stable part of Derby County Football Club was its manager, Wayne Rooney.
On Friday, that stability was rocked once more when the former Manchester United and England striker resigned from his post, citing that he felt the club needed somebody new at the helm.
“Personally, I feel the club now needs to be led by someone with fresh energy and not affected by the events that have happened over the last eighteen months,” Rooney said in a statement. “I will remember my time at Derby with great pride and affection and would like to thank all my staff, players and of course the fans for their incredible support. I will never forget you and hope to see you all again in the near future and in happier times.”
It is believed that people close to Rooney were also stunned by the 36-year-old’s decision. It is also believed that while Rooney did not officially endorse incumbent Liam Rosenior - whatever that means, he does think extremely highly of his former assistant manager as Rosenior now takes up the post.
It is a gesture typically classy and befitting of Rooney’s time at the helm of Derby County.
Rooney leaves after 85 games in charge, winning 24 of those matches and accruing a win percentage of 28%. Without context those are unimpressive numbers, but under the often creaking pressure Derby County was under the feats he achieved in the job are miraculous.
When he arrived into the role in December 2020 - after the co-manger stint with Rosenior lasted all of two games before Steve McClaren informed all the coaching staff in a meeting that Rooney would be placed in sole interim charge - Rooney spoke of seeing smiles on faces once more, players enjoying training, not thinking too much and getting their confidence back after falling to the foot of the Championship table under Phillip Cocu’s guidance.
Rooney’s rapid culture shift was a two-pronged approach. Firstly more fun came by way of a looser approach. Rooney and Rosenior were much more hands on in training than Cocu and his staff - Twan Scheepers and Chris van der Weerden. They also moved pre-game media press conferences forward half an hour so Rooney could go and play head tennis with members of his squad.
Rooney also organised bonding trips in Wales, the idea being to get the new members of his squad which he signed in January - Teden Mengi from Manchester United, Patrick Roberts from Manchester City, George Edmundson from Rangers, Lee Gregory from Stoke and Beni Baningime from Everton - to gel with the current crop. It also represented a chance to hold each other accountable for some of the on field disappointments that season.
The other prong was creating a siege mentality, a staple of some of the managers he worked under during his playing career - most noticeably Sir Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho. Though his approach to the media was much softer.
There was no other option but to bring the squad together in such circumstances in the eye of such a violet and debris-throwing hurricane or risk being knocked out by a stray takeover collapse swirling by or late wage payment.
Examples of this are dotted in obvious and less so places. Rooney and his squad decided they would all take a knee prior to each game. However, after Colin Kazim-Richards was racially abused in February following their 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest, the club held a meeting, in which Rooney wanted Kazim-Richards, who always stood with a fist in the air, and Andre Wisdom, who had recently stopped kneeling, to lead the meeting.
The conclusion was that all players and staff would stand along the touchline, arm in arm, prior to kick off. It was vital to Rooney that everybody was on the same page. Either everybody knelt or nobody did.
A ruthless rule with the squad also created an environment were a tight ship was being run. Rooney swiftly moved on from Duane Holmes after the pair clashed professionally - it is worth noting that neither side had any personal beef with each other.
“I like Duane as a person, he is a good bubbly character, and he didn't fit into my plans,” Rooney told the media in January 2021. “I want the players working every day on the training pitch. If you don't do that, and I spoke to every player and explained if you don't put the work in I don't want you at this football club.”
That Holmes went on record with his desire to return to former club Huddersfield Town upon his introductory interview with the Terriers almost proved Rooney’s point.
Rooney also dispatched of Jack Marriott that January. At a time when the Rams desperatly needed a new striker, Rooney chose not to exercise Marriott’s release clause instead sending him back to Sheffield Wednesday. The kicker is that Marriott had been back at Moor Farm since November rehabbing a calf issue - plenty of time for Rooney to look him over.
Man management was one area which some members of his squad felt Rooney needed to improve on, with one source saying: “Tactically, he knows it. He’s brilliant. He breaks it down simply and he has a lot of the answers. If he can handle the players a bit better I think he could go far in management.”
Naturally trying to manage several dozen different personality, each with different dreams, problems and things which make them tick it can be akin to juggling chainsaws.
If Rooney ruled his personnel with ruthless efficiency, he was much more flexible with his tactics. One of the first things he did when taking over was strip back Phillip Cocu’s often complex style of tactics.
The Dutchman was known for being exceptionally articulate when it came to explaining his methods, but showing his players practically became a problem. He would also stop training sessions for what some players perceived to be issues so small they started to make players overthink.
Rooney had his players line up in 4-4-2, 4-3-3, 4-2-3-1, 3-4-3, all with varying styles depending on what the opposition did well and what personnel Rooney had available to him at the time. 4-4-2 with a direct style of play and crosses into the box en mass? Sure. Quick, sharp passing and fluid counter attacks against more open team? Absolutely.
That tactical flexibility was forced upon him due to the mid-season change of management and the need for immediate success - staying in the Championship.
When allowed to shake free of such pressures - though new ones were never far away - Rooney and Rosenior set to work installing their method of football, the apex of which was Ravel Morrison’s goal against Barnsley during a 2-0 victory in March. From Festy Ebosele winning possession in his own half, the Rams exchanged six swift, slick passes combined with ribbon-flowing movement to dice their opponents apart and score one of the goals of the season.
Ultimately, his efforts were not enough to keep Derby up (they would have had the club not been docked 21 points for falling into administration and then as an EFL punishment for their amortisation policy).
But even amid the turmoil, the heartbreak of inevitable relegation, the (rightful) anger from fans towards Mel Morris and Quantuma Rooney, somehow, brought smiles back.
As he said to congregating Derby fans at Moor Farm after their relegation was confirmed following defeat to Queens Park Rangers in April “it’s been fucking hard”. And he is right, it has been. But Wayne Rooney leaves as manager of Derby County with his head held high.
A positive resume of Rooneys time at Derby Ryan..but no mention of his struggles with the terrible away form which, despite the points deductions, relegated the club in the end. There’s also no mention of the now obvious link to the Kirchner ‘group’ and his involvement in the attempted takeover. Like you ..I was impressed with Rooneys handling of the media,he definitely improved as he became more practiced. But his leaving has left me with an unanswered question of his managerial abilities and one which potential employers may ask themselves. Derby was always a ‘win win’ scenario..keep us up;hero.. relegation,blame the points deduction. Given a more aspirational club with greater expectations,will he be able to ‘walk the walk’ I wonder? Only time and an expensive punt from another club owner will tell.
A very insightful read in to the issues surrounding Derby County