Derby County players get alert for December salary

Derby have paid their first-team players their outstanding wages for December. The Championship club under transfer embargo could not meet last month

They had failed to pay  their biggest earners last month, while lower-earning players had been paid either 50 per cent or all of their salaries.

A delay in the protracted takeover by Sheikh Khaled’s Derventio Holdings has meant Derby remain in a difficult financial situation.

There are serious doubts over whether the purchase of the club will be completed, despite a deal for owner Mel Morris to sell the Rams to Abu Dhabi billionaire Sheikh Khaled being reached in November.

Wayne Rooney, who has won his last two Championship matches since his appointment as permanent Derby manager, said last week he will not stand down if the protracted takeover of the club collapses

Asked if he would quit Pride Park should the takeover fall through, Rooney said: “No, not at all.

“Ideally, I want players in. We need that. But if we can’t I believe in the quality of the players we’ve got here.

“With the takeover and the salary situation, it’s difficult for players, and it’s difficult for me in that I can’t go into the transfer market at the moment.

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“Ideally, the quicker the players get paid, the quicker we can move on. Then we can look at players we want to bring in.” The wages for January are due to be paid to Derby’s players at the end of this week.