'Players' manager' Wayne Rooney the silver lining in Derby County's disastrous season

July 28, 2021, and a summer downpour soaks the few fans outside Derby County’s Pride Park stadium ahead of a pre-season friendly with Real Betis, who’ve chosen nearby St George’s Park to escape the heat of Seville for pre-season.

Also under a cloud is Derby boss Wayne Rooney, 35, who edges his car into the spot reserved for the first team manager 90 minutes before kick-off. Rooney is front page news for the wrong reasons after attending a party after Derby’s previous friendly.

As he walks towards the players’ entrance, past a gaggle of Derby selfie hunters and Betis fans, one dressed as a panda, Rooney deals with every single request showing no sign of the pressure he is supposedly under.

Pressure from being in charge at a club who can’t sign players, face administration, a transfer ban and multiple point deduction because of financial irregularities.

Somehow, Derby beat one of Spain’s strongest sides 1-0 to register their first pre-season win, but nine out of ten seats in Pride Park’s 33,500 capacity are empty – indicating the low mood among Rams’ fans. Rooney apologised for his actions on television after the game and the cloud lifted above him, if not the club he was in charge of.

Rooney joined Derby in January 2019 after returning to England following a successful spell in Washington and the MLS. He joined Derby as a player; the electric pace had long gone, but his vision and passing was peerless in England’s second tier and he was quickly named captain, then caretaker manager after Philip Cocu was dismissed.

He became permanent manager in January 2021 after retiring from playing following a stellar career where he became Manchester United and England’s leading all-time goalscorer.

Rooney was in charge at a mess of a