Derby County in 'horrendous' position as takeover drags on, says Wayne Rooney

Wayne Rooney was appointed Derby manager in January 2021

Derby County boss Wayne Rooney said the troubled Championship club have been left in a "horrendous" position with no end in sight to the takeover saga.

One of the parties in talks to buy the Rams pulled out of negotiations on Thursday.

Derby have been in administration for nearly six months and are staring at relegation to League One.

"We're all worried. I'm worried, the players are worried, the staff are worried," Rooney told BBC Radio Derby.

Derby administrators Quantuma have been in "active dialogue" with a number of parties and were hoping to have named a preferred bidder by now.

One of the groups in discussions - the Binnie family - submitted their offer for the club on Monday but told BBC Sport their £30m bid had been rejected. They said it was their understanding that there were no other bids on the table.

However, on Friday Quantuma said they were "continuing to work with prospective purchasers who remain interested in buying the club", adding it was their "duty" to secure an "appropriate valuation for Derby County to present to the EFL".

The prospect of this drawn-out situation going on even longer worries Rooney.

"The administrators had a meeting with supporters' groups and staff and what's clear is there is no preferred bidder there and, for the short-term future, it's a critical position we're in," he said.

"We needed this sorted months ago. I know it's been difficult but we all need a preferred bidder in.

"From my understanding when you name a preferred bidder it can take up to 12 weeks for them take control and the club to exit administration. So, looking at the timeline, that takes us up to pre-season, but then what happens then? Is it another points deduction or embargo? How do we move forward?

"For this club, it's a horrendous position to be in."

'Every day that goes past is a day lost'

Derby missed a deadline at the start of March to prove they had funds to carry on until the end of the season, leading to the English Football League warning them the lack of progress was a threat to the club's future.

That evidence was duly provided by administrators, despite the EFL saying a number of "challenges remained".

Although Rooney is aware that finding a suitable buyer is looking bleak, he knows administrators are doing everything they can.

"Everyone was expecting something yesterday and to miss out on that is frustrating. Everyone's been informed things might happen in the four or five days so hopefully that's the case," he added.

"We can't guarantee someone will be in next week because it's been said so many times and it hasn't happened. I know they're trying to get deals done but the lack of movement is a real concern. It's damaging - every day that goes by is a day lost."

Preparing for games is a 'release'

Rooney has won praise for galvanising his squad to fight against relegation since their 21-point deduction for going into administration and breaching financial rules was imposed at the start of the season.

The Rams take on second-placed Bournemouth on Saturday, five points off safety with 10 games to go - and Rooney says they won't give up now.

"The majority of the squad don't know where their future lies. They've got families to provide for and they deserve a lot of praise for what they're doing," he said.

"It's a release for me and the players when you're on the training pitch.

"On matchday all of this goes to the back of your mind because it's 11v11 and trying to win the game and then it's back to getting ready to answer questions on the situation. That's where we are at and there's no hiding from it.

"We can't control the off-field situation - our job is to try to stay in the Championship and we'll do that until it's mathematically impossible."

Derby have played some excellent football under Rooney, epitomised by their 2-0 win over relegation rivals Barnsley thanks to two goals from Ravel Morrison (left)

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