Wayne Rooney & John Terry in line for Derby job

Martin Macdonald

• Updated: 23 May 2023 08:47 CDT
• 3 min read

Following the dismissal of Phillip Cocu as Derby boss over the weekend, Wayne Rooney has been put in temporary charge of the Rams, and is in line to take over on a permanent basis.

The Dutchman took over Derby in July of 2019 but could only guide them to a 10th place finish despite the club having aspirations of being promoted to the Premier League via automatic qualification or the play-offs.

• Tottenham statement fuels Kane departure talk as Man Utd and Chelsea circle

He was given a chance to improve things for the 2020/21 campaign but the team regressed further and have won just one game out of their opening 11 fixtures to sit rock bottom of the Championship.

A month after Cocu was appointed, Rooney completed a high profile transfer to Derby from DC United in Major League Soccer. He was named captain of the side, where he would feature as a player as well as continuing his development as a coach.

That development has now seen him named as boss, albeit temporarily, for the moment, as Derby go through a takeover.

The club is expected to be bought by Sheik Khaled bin Zayed Al Nehayan, the cousin of Man City owner Sheik Mansour, for around £60m this week.

Though Rooney is in charge for now, it is unclear whether the new owners will retain him with no managerial experience.

The same could be said for John Terry, who is also reportedly on the managerial wishlist of the Championship side despite having never acted as head coach of a senior side.

The Chelsea legend does, however, have a burgeoning reputation as a coach, having impressed as assistant manager to Dean Smith at Aston Villa through their promotion and subsequent survival in the Premier League.

It is likely that Rooney will be in charge of the side for Derby’s weekend match away at Bristol City.