Wayne Rooney 'in line to become Derby boss' with Phillip Cocu on brink of Rams sack

Wayne Rooney is on the brink of becoming the next Derby County manager with Phillip Cocu on the verge of being sacked.

It follows a shoddy start to the season from the Rams, who are 20th in the Championship.

Club chief Mel Morris had ambitions of his team making a go at promotion this season.

But one win in four has left Derby on the wrong end of the table and sums up a largely tepid spell under Cocu.

The Pride Park outfit ended last season in 10th but finished the campaign with four losses on the bounce.

And that form has carried over into the new season, and Cocu's time could be up.

Wayne Rooney could become the new Derby boss (Adam Hughes / SWNS)

According to The Sun, Morris has seen enough and the writing is on the wall for the Dutchman.

And in a shock twist of fate, he is prepared to hand Rooney the reins despite him still being a player for the club.

The 34-year-old, who is club captain, only signed for the Rams in a surprise move in January.

Ironically, it was Rooney who most likely kept Cocu in a job after his last-gasp free-kick gave them the win over Norwich.

But a poor result against Watford will spell the end for the ex-PSV manager.

However, Rooney does not have all his coaching badges from the FA yet - meaning Derby would have to hire a fully-qualified coach alongside him.

The Sun report that this would be former boss John Gregory, who last managed the club in 2003.

Rooney is still playing and captaining the Rams (PA)

The 66-year-old's most recent venture was in India, where he coached Chennaiyin.

It would not be the first time Morris has turned to inexperience for managers, giving Frank Lampard his first job as a coach.

The Chelsea legend took Derby to the play-off final, where they were beaten by Aston Villa, before moving to the Blues.

Rooney has always insisted he is looking to become a manager, and upon his arrival in Derbyshire earlier this year, he said: “I’ve always been interested in it.

“When Louis van Gaal was manager at United, Ryan Giggs was analysing the opponents and I used to go in there for a few hours after training.”

Rooney has technically already managed when he took charge of the England team for Soccer Aid.