Derby County face 'pivotal' week, says manager Wayne Rooney
- Published
Rooney's side are 14 points adrift of safety in the Championship
Derby County boss Wayne Rooney feels the next week is "pivotal" for the future of the club.
The Rams secured a hard-fought 1-0 win over West Brom on Monday.
The victory came amid the backdrop of increased uncertainty around Derby following Chris Kirchner's decision to withdraw his bid for the club.
Derby's administrators believe they could be in a position to announce a preferred bidder before the new year, although that is not guaranteed.
However, with veteran defender Phil Jagielka among the players whose contracts expire next month, Rooney needs some certainty so he can keep his squad together for the second half of the campaign.
"Next week is pivotal for this football club," said Rooney.
"This club needs an owner. I need someone to report back to and plan with. I understand the fans getting frustrated with the situation because I certainly am. We just hope it can move forward in the next week."
It is understood a consortium including former owner Andy Appleby are the leading candidates.
Although Derby owe HMRC £29m, BBC Sport has been told an agreement over that tax bill will form part of negotiations after a preferred bidder is announced, with a Company Voluntary Arrangement one of the ways the club may exit the administration process.
However, according to Rooney, that process can be continued by the administrators with the preferred bidder taking control of the football side, something he thinks is essential given Derby remain 14 points from safety despite registering back-to-back wins for the first time since February.
"As far as I understand it, if you come in as a preferred bidder you can take control of the squad whilst everything else is being dealt with," said Rooney.
"That would allow me to re-sign players and give players new contracts.
"Phil Jagielka is out of contract on 17 January. It would allow me to do that.
"I am not saying I want £30m-£40m in January. I just want to tie some players down. There are loan players out there and free agents. There is some business we could do in the short term."