Wayne Rooney wants to join the growing band of young English managers when his playing days are over, not sit in a television studio.
The former England captain’s illustrious career as a player is reaching its twilight years.
He will be a couple of months shy of his 35th birthday when his 18-month contract with Derby – which begins at the start of next month – expires.
Hanging up the boots often leads to a decision between remaining in the game as a coach or becoming a pundit.
Fellow former England internationals Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and Scott Parker are among those to recently land managerial jobs at club level, while John Terry is on the coaching staff at Aston Villa. And Rooney wants to follow in their footsteps.
“There has been a lack of former English international players going into management over the last 10 to 15 years, so I think it’s brilliant,” said Rooney, who plans on finishing his A Licence in time to apply for his Pro Licence next summer.
“I think players nowadays, when they have finished playing have enough money that they don’t need to do anything, but obviously they can go into TV and earn good money doing that.
“However, I think with Steven, Frank, Scott Parker, John Terry all getting involved, it’s great to see and it’s always something I’ve wanted to do when I stop playing. It’s great for me to see them working and doing so well.”
Asked if he was determined not to be a pundit, Rooney replied: “It depends how it goes. Ideally I want to get into it and be successful.
“It’s something that’s completely new to me and you don’t know if you’ll be good or bad. I want to give it a go and get into it. I feel I have a lot of knowledge of the game.”
England and Manchester United’s all-time leading goal scorer is taking his first steps into coaching alongside his role as a player at Derby.
He added: “I’ve always said that when my body tells me I can’t do it anymore, then I’ll stop playing, but I feel physically good right now.
“When I do stop, it depends what offers are out there. But I’m not going to sit here and lie, any manager wants to manage at the top level and that will certainly be my ambition too.”
