MX23RW : Tuesday, February 25 20:50:43| >> :600:1476385:1476385:
Feb 8, 2020 at 3pm UK at ​Liberty Stadium
Attendance: 16,230
SwanseaSwansea City
2-3
DerbyDerby County
Dhanda (56'), Naughton (58')
FT(HT: 0-1)
Waghorn (8'), Holmes (64'), Lawrence (80')

Cocu hails experience and quality of Rooney

Cocu hails experience and quality of Rooney
© Reuters
The former England striker has had a big impact at Pride Park.

Manager Phillip Cocu hailed the impact of Wayne Rooney on and off the field after Derby snatched their first away win since the opening day of the season by beating Swansea 3-2.

Martyn Waghorn put the Rams on course for a rare road victory after eight minutes when he followed up Tom Lawrence's powerful shot to tap in the opener.

But two goals in three second-half minutes turned the game on its head.

Half-time substitute Yan Dhanda robbed Jason Knight of possession and fired a low shot into the bottom corner before Kyle Naughton smashed the ball into an unguarded net after goalkeeper Ben Hamer spilled Andre Ayew's ball in.

But Duane Holmes volleyed in an equaliser after 64 minutes before Lawrence snatched victory with a dipping shot from 20 yards with 10 minutes left.

Cocu feels it is no coincidence that Rooney's arrival has coincided with their upturn in form.

He said: "Wayne provides quality, a class player, he has character and can also provide a link between the technical staff and the players.

"When we discuss options on the pitch before the game, I only have to wave and call his name and he gives something extra to us.

"He speaks a lot to the young players, he gives us organisation, and he works well with Martyn Waghorn. He shows how to press and push and on which side. He provides experience, but also quality.

"The team benefits from him. It's more easy for him now because when he joined us he was a lot in our office and we gave him all the insights into how we work.

"I am happy to very open but he's seen how we work and now his influence is getting bigger.

"When we were in the second-half, losing 2-1, it was amazing to see the boys come back into the game and win it, they showed great character and mental strength, the team did a fantastic job."

Swansea missed the chance to cut the gap on their play-off rivals and manager Steve Cooper felt they only had themselves to blame.

He said: "We've got to be careful, if we don't start winning games the gap will start getting bigger and bigger, it's that time of the season.

"We have two games left this week and we've got to react on Tuesday. If we play better then we give ourselves a chance of winning.

"I'm not looking much further than that but I know we're in that part of the season where you have to win games, and especially those home games.

"That's what makes today doubly frustrating, we've shot ourselves in the foot, we allowed them to win the game rather than them having to work really really hard to earn it.

"It should have been the other way around, we should have put the game to bed after going 2-1 up, and we didn't.

"It was a learning experience for all of us as a team. There was so much of the game we could have managed better and we didn't."

body check tags ::

Click here for more stories about Phillip Cocu

Click here for more stories about Derby County

Share this article now:
New Instagram promo
Angry Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa on February 1, 2020
Read Next:
Championship week 30 predictions including Nottingham Forest vs. Leeds
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.

rhs 2.0
Champions League
Championship
League One
League Two
National League
Scottish Premiership
Scottish Championship
Scottish League One
Scottish League Two
Copa Sudamericana
Qatar Open Second Round
Tables
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool27261064174779
2Manchester CityMan City27183668293957
3Leicester CityLeicester27155754272750
4Chelsea2713594537844
5Manchester UnitedMan Utd27118841291241
6Tottenham HotspurSpurs2711794436840
7Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd27101072925440
8Wolverhampton WanderersWolves2791263832639
9Arsenal2781363936337
10Burnley27114123339-637
11Everton27106113641-536
12Southampton27104133448-1434
13Crystal Palace2789102432-833
14Newcastle UnitedNewcastle2787122441-1731
15Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton27610113239-728
16Bournemouth2775152643-1726
17Aston Villa2774163452-1825
18West Ham UnitedWest Ham2766153248-1624
19Watford2759132443-1924
20Norwich CityNorwich2746172451-2718

Subscribe to our Newsletter


Transfer Talk Daily
Match previews - twice weekly
Morning Briefing (7am UTC)
Ultra close-up image of Kevin De Bruyne [NOT FOR USE IN ARTICLES]Get the latest transfer news, match previews and news direct to your inbox!