GARY Rowett has praised the job Wayne Rooney is doing at Derby manager especially amid speculation about the future of the club.
Rooney got his first victory as permanent manager when the Rams won 1-0 at The Den last November.
When Rooney (above, in action against Millwall last July) was handed the reins full-time on November 26 after a joint-caretaker spell, Derby were bottom of the league with six points from 13 games, six points from safety.
Derby had won only one of their first 15 in the league this season before their trip to The Den, but under Rooney have nine victories in 20 games and are seven points above the relegation zone after halting Barnsley’s seven-match winning streak with a 0-0 draw at Oakwell on Wednesday.
Sky Sports reported this week that Rams owner Mel Morris has set a deadline for the sale of the club to one interested party.
Rowett also started his career as a caretaker manager, at Burton Albion, before being appointed to the full-time position.
“Your support staff are vital,” Rowett said. “If you’ve got good staff around you that allows you to focus on what you’re good at, what your strengths are.
“I’m sure that because Wayne worked under so many good manager he’ll have a good idea what he wants to do. He’ll find his own way, he’s his own man.
“I think the biggest challenge at Derby has probably been the constant talk of new owners coming in or the change of ownership.
“It’s been a tough first job to manage that scenario. But they’ve performed well. If you look at their results since Wayne took over permanently they’ve been very good.
“You have to give them a lot of credit. They’re very organised, tough to beat.
“They’ve been a bit like us, not scored loads of goals but they haven’t conceded many.
“So it’ll be a tough game as we found in the first game at The Den when we lost 1-0 in a closely-fought encounter.”
Image: Millwall FC