Rooney: “It Is On The Players To Respond In This Game”

Wayne Rooney has made it clear that he wants a response and a reaction to Derby County’s disappointing defeat at Preston North End in midweek.

The 3-0 loss at Deepdale was the Rams’ fourth in a row and it leaves them four points above the Sky Bet Championship’s bottom three.

Rooney made his feelings clear following the final whistle that the result and performance was simply not good enough.

Derby have three games left to play in the league campaign while Rotherham United, who sit in the final relegation spot, have two games in hand following a number of postponements earlier in the season due to COVID-19.

Rooney’s side are back in action on home turf at Pride Park Stadium on Saturday afternoon when they face Birmingham City (3pm kick-off).

The Derby boss believes his side are well prepared and now says the players must do the business on the pitch.

“It is a massive game for us and one which we are very well prepared for,” Rooney told RamsTV.

“We are ready, the players are ready. The players know my disappointment in the performance against Preston on Tuesday and they have responded well in training.

“It is on them now to respond well in the game as well.”

Rooney added: “My team is ready; my starting line-up is ready and the bench is ready. The players who are fit are ready to play and they will do everything in their power to win the game.”

Derby were 4-0 winners at Birmingham earlier in the campaign.

Rooney’s side were three goals to the good by half-time thanks to strikes from Krystian Bielik, Graeme Shinnie and Colin Kazim-Richards.

A further goal from Jason Knight followed in the second half of the victory in the West Midlands at the end of December.

It is a result and performance the Rams can take heart from, although the Blues have been much improved in recent weeks since the appointment of Lee Bowyer as their new manager.

Rooney said: “It was a very good performance to beat Birmingham 4-0 that night.

“It was arguably our best performance and certainly our best result of the season. We know it is a big game tomorrow, Birmingham are in a good run of form and it is a big game for them as well.

“All we can do is to take care of ourselves and my job is to get the players ready and the players now have to go and perform.”