Championship side Plymouth Argyle have appointed former England captain Wayne Rooney as their new head coach. The 38-year-old replaces Ian Foster, who was dismissed on April 1 after a series of poor results.
This is Rooney’s first role since being sacked by Birmingham City on January 2, following a disappointing tenure of less than three months in which he lost nine of 15 games. Birmingham, who were in the Championship play-off positions when Rooney took over, were relegated to League One earlier this month.
The Plymouth role is Rooney’s fourth head coaching position. He was England’s top scorer with 53 goals until Harry Kane surpassed his record in March 2023.
Rooney managed Derby County during a time of financial turmoil. He successfully led the Rams to avoid relegation in May 2021 during his first season, but departed a year later after the club was relegated, having been penalized 21 points due to financial issues.
He then spent 15 months managing DC United in the United States, but left last October to take the Birmingham job after failing to secure a place in the Major League Soccer (MLS) play-offs.
At Plymouth Argyle, first-team coaches Kevin Nancekivell and Simon Ireland, along with goalkeeping coach Darryl Flahavan, will join Rooney’s backroom staff, with further additions expected in the future.
The perfect next step in my career’
Rooney is familiar with Home Park and Plymouth Argyle’s ‘Green Army’ fans from a 3-3 draw against Birmingham in December, which was the Pilgrims’ first game following former manager Steven Schumacher’s move to Stoke City.
“Accepting this position at Plymouth Argyle feels like the ideal progression in my career, and I appreciate the trust the chairman and board have placed in me,” Rooney commented.
This is an opportunity to be part of an exciting project. I look forward to helping to build a squad of players to play expansive football – and to entertain the Green Army.
“I have experienced first-hand how talented the existing group of players is here – and also the incredible atmosphere at Home Park.
“The club is on an exciting long-term journey, with a progressive plan in place. I am grateful for the opportunity to be part of it.”
Argyle chairman Simon Hallett said Rooney approached the club when they began the process of recruiting their next head coach having ensured survival on the final day of the season.
“Throughout the interview process, Wayne showed himself to be a passionate, intelligent, and knowledgeable candidate with an appetite to prove himself and develop his managerial career,” added Hallett.
So much so, that he reached out to the board when we started this process and was attracted by the project at hand and showed a real plan on how to lead the football club forward.
“His ambitions and aims match ours perfectly and we feel he is the perfect candidate to provide the exciting and attacking brand of football that we all like to see and help us achieve the club’s mission.”
