What a rollercoaster ride it’s been at Derby County over the last 12-18 months.
Not a day appears to go by without one problem or another rearing its ugly head. Club ownership, or should that be lack of ownership, appears to be the overriding issue that is affecting everything else.
Against that kind of backdrop, it’s a wonder that Wayne Rooney has been able to not only get a team out every week for their Championship fixtures, but also to have them competing.
After a 21-point deduction for going into administration, it was always going to be an uphill struggle to stay in the division.
The heady days of the Premier League look about as far away now as they’ve ever been, with the very real possibility of playing their football in League One during the 2022/23 campaign.
Rooney, however, isn’t prepared to throw in the towel just yet. A series of wins has brought the Rams into touching distance with second-bottom Barnsley, who are now just four points ahead of Derby.
However, it’s the gap to safety that still remains the issue. At the time of writing, and despite their recent upturn in form, Rooney’s side find themselves 11 points adrift of the team that’s sat fourth from bottom of the Championship, Reading, who they play on Monday.
The three recent victories have obviously gone to Rooney’s head. After their last win, against Stoke, the former Manchester United star made a ridiculous claim.
“We have always believed there is a possibility we can stay in this division,” he was quoted as saying by the Daily Mail.
“[…] These three wins now are at the back of our minds and we must give our full attention to Reading on Monday because that is an important game.”
It’s perhaps the positive mindset that’s needed when leading a group of men out of the trenches, but if he thinks that the Rams can claw themselves out of their current predicament, Rooney is, frankly, deluded.
Not as deluded as the person who thinks they are a journalist writing this nonsense.
What part of ridiculous is his comment? What, as a manager, is he supposed to say.
To say he is deluded is an opinion that is on a par with Manchester United fans believing they will win the Premiership this year but you won’t print that will you.
Stick with your love in with ManU Barça and Messi and La Liga Instead of cheap shots at a manager and club employees working tremendously hard in circumstances that are difficult to imagine ,but quite likely, will be not in isolation in the near future.
Well said!
If they maintain current PPG ratio, they’ll end up on 39 points. Barnsley would be 24, Peterborough 38, Reading 50, Cardiff 44 and Hull 46. It’s a long shot to overhaul one of Cardiff or Hull, but not as ridiculous a statement as your article
Is the writer of this article a Leeds or Forest fan by any chance? What’s he supposed to say then Jason? Yeah let’s not bother, there’s no point…….
Your deluded in the writing of this trash, you need to return to uni and re-educate yourself, you haven’t got a clue, idiot.
Uphill struggle of course it is, deluded not in the slightest. As Manager he needs to instill belief into his players, something he has attempted to do from day one of his tenure as Manager.
Can we avoid the drop? Maybe maybe not but we stand a far better chance now than we did last month. We still have a mountain to climb of course, I’m not getting carried away but in the last 5 games only Blackburn, Middlesborough and Sheff Utd have taken more points, OPR and Forest have taken the same points, the rest have taken fewer. Without the points deductions we would be in 13th.
One thing for sure is Rooney and the lads will keep believing and the fans will keep throwing our full support behind their efforts.
What a tool this reporter is
Considering Derby have reduced the gap from 20 points from safety to 11 points from safety in the space of three games, the idea that is “deluded” they can overhaul 11 points over 20 off games is ridiculous, especially considering they have 4 of the 5 teams directly above them to play at home and are currently in much better form than the teams fighting relegation (bar, perhaps, Hull). Of course, it is unlikely – especially considering it is unknown who the club who lose over January to the vultures circling – but the tone of this article is, frankly, very bitter.
It’s not over until the fat lady sings, but it could be for this journalist.