Wayne Rooney has been appointed as Derby County’s new manager on a permanent basis, as confirmed by the club via their official website.
The Manchester United legend agreed to join Derby in August 2019 on a player-coach role starting in January 2020. Since then, he has made 35 appearances for the Rams, scoring on seven occasions.
From November 26 onwards, Rooney has been taking charge of Derby on an interim basis. This sparked an impressive turnaround, going unbeaten in their next six games having lost the previous four.
Captain. Leader. The greatest.@WayneRooney: The Manager 🐏
— Derby County (@dcfcofficial) January 15, 2021
And now the England national team’s all-time top goalscorer has been rewarded with the job permanently.
The 35-year-old has signed a two-and-a-half year contract with Derby, set to keep him at the club until 2023.
Joining him in his backroom staff will be assistant manager Liam Rosenior, first-team coach Shay Given and development coach Justin Walker. All three were working with Rooney during his interim period.
Rooney replaces Dutch manager Philip Cocu in charge at Pride Park. Cocu departed the club by mutual consent back in November, after a late 1-0 defeat to Queens Park Rangers left them rock bottom of the table, having won just once in their opening ten fixtures.
In line with his promotion to the managerial position, Rooney has officially retired from his playing career.
He leaves behind an astonishing legacy, as Manchester United and England’s all-time leading goalscorers.
The forward is one of only two players to have netted over 200 Premier League goals, and boasts five Premier League titles and a Champions League winners medal among other honours.
