72
QQQ Daily Mail, Wednesday, August 7, 201972
W
AYNE Rooney
will become the
highest earning
player in the
Championship
after signing a £100,000-a-
week deal with Derby
County, funded in part by a
record sponsorship deal
with betting company 32Red.
England’s record goalscorer con-
firmed he will leave DC United in
January and take the first steps
towards a career in management
by becoming player-coach under
manager Phillip Cocu. He will be
on an 18-month contract with the
option of a further year.
It is a remarkable coup for Derby
— particularly owner Mel Morris,
who was at pains to point out how
Rooney’s arrival will project his
club’s brand globally and open up
commercial opportunities.
Such impact was immediate as,
against a backdrop of questions
about their ability to comply with
financial fair play, Morris confirmed
a lucrative deal struck by club
sponsors 32Red.
The club confirmed Rooney willbe given the No 32 shirt when he
arrives in the new year.
Morris said: ‘It’s incredible. I
can’t imagine what this is going to
do for ticket sales, even away
games. On the back of Wayne
joining the club, we have just
been offered a record-breaking
sponsorship deal with our
principal shirt sponsor, 32Red.’
Neil Banbury, 32Red’s general
manager, said: ‘We are delighted
that our commitment to the club
has allowed Derby to bring in an
England legend.’
Rooney has a basic annual salary
of £2.8million in the US and com-
mercial revenue is understood to
boost his earnings closer to £8m.
Yet the father of four’s decision
to return was not motivated by
money, with his young family
yearning to return to the UK.
Rooney confirmed: ‘There were a
few factors. Family is everything to
us and we make this change to becloser to the ones we love back in
England.’
The 33-year-old, who was given
leave of absence by DC United
coach Ben Olsen last month to be
with his family ‘for a mental and
physical break’, added: ‘We’ve got
four young boys and certainly for
my oldest it is a crucial time in his
schooling. It was important for me
to look at that.’
Sensing he was open to curtailing
his time in Washington, Derby sent
chief executive Stephen Pearce to
the US to discuss a deal last week.
‘The starting point was that we
understood Wayne was keen to
return to the UK and of course we
had a look at the situation to see if
we could do something on the back
of that,’ said Morris. ‘The conver-
sation he had with Phillip Cocu
was absolutely critical to the inter-
est Wayne has.’
Rooney said: ‘It would be
disrespectful if I didn’t finish the
season with DC. They have been
fantastic with me. There were
other clubs interested but I made
my decision and I wasn’t going togo back on it. Derby are a club with
great ambitions. It wasn’t just
about coming home. The opportu-
nity to come back to England and
play, but also to take up a coaching
role and work with Phillip, was too
good to turn down.
‘Firstly, I’m a player and feel I
have a lot of quality to bring to the
squad. Secondly, I want to learn
from Phillip and his staff to gain
experience for when I take the next
step.’
A keen student of his influential
managers such as Sir Alex Fergu-
son and Louis van Gaal, Rooney
will get help from the FA who
intend to fly out to Washington
next week and help fast-track him
through his coaching badges so he
is qualified by January. ‘I started
doing my coaching badges a few
years ago,’ he said. ‘But throughmy children I couldn’t always find
time to fit them in. The FA are fly-
ing out next Monday to continue
them and when I’m back in Eng-
land, I’ll have more time to fulfil
the requirements.’
Rooney will return to Washington
from Derby today ahead of train-
ing tomorrow in preparation for
DC United’s game against LA Gal-
axy on Sunday.
He added: ‘I love football. It’s
what I know. It’s something which
I want to do and if my body is still
ready and able to do that, I will
continue to do so. I always remem-
ber Alex Ferguson saying, “The
hardest thing to do in life is to
work hard”. That’s true, no matter
what you do. The most difficult
thing is to stay motivated and
work hard. If you can do that it’s a
great quality to have.’ROONEY’S
MOVE IS NO
GAMBLE
,SAY DERBY
Betting firm help fund his record deal
«FURY AT HIS £7.8m DEAL — PAGE 5
Big signing:
Rooney with
Morris (left)
and Cocu
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