Ex-Birmingham City and Plymouth Argyle boss Wayne Rooney eyeing new job despite £400k gig | OneFootball

The 40-year-old has not been in the dugout since December 2024

Wayne Rooney has established himself as a key pundit on the BBC's flagship show Match of the Day.

The former Manchester United and England legend signed a lucrative two-year deal after impressing the higher-ups following Gary Lineker's exit at the start of the 25/26 season.

Rooney's transition to working in media came after a turbulent period in the management dugout with both Birmingham City and Plymouth Argyle. In truth, his whole career as a head coach has been turbulent to say the least.

However, sources close to the 40-year-old suggest he harbours ambitions to return to the touchline sooner rather than later.

Ex-Birmingham City and Plymouth Argyle boss Wayne Rooney ready for manager return

As per The Sun, Rooney is now ready to quit his £400k-per-year Match of the Day role in pursuit of a fresh managerial opportunity.

The report claims he wants a job in the Championship or League One, with a source telling them, "Wayne is enjoying his telly work, but he does want to get back into management. He will be open to it if the right opportunity comes up."

Rooney has been out of management since leaving Argyle by mutual consent in December 2024, where he left the club bottom of the second tier and four points from safety.

In total, he had suffered 13 defeats in 23 Championship games as Plymouth boss.

Going back to the aforementioned report, the same source also told The Sun, "Ideally, he [Rooney] would get something at the start of the summer so he is in position for the start of the season in August."

For all his woes down in Devon, Rooney's time in the West Midlands, with Birmingham City, was arguably worse.

He replaced John Eustace - now head coach at Derby County - despite Blues sitting sixth in the Championship table, but managed just two wins in 15 games, leaving the club 20th and teetering six points above the drop zone.

Rooney's stint as Blues' gaffer lasted just 83 days, and the controversial decision to dismiss Eustace backfired spectacularly under the former Manchester United man's leadership.

Wayne Rooney could find himself managing in the Championship before the start of next season

It remains to be seen what club in the Championship, if any, would take a punt on Rooney after what he did at both Blues or Argyle, but he must still be confident to manage a good side.

Given the fact that The Sun claims he'd also look for a job in the third-tier, that is probably the more realistic option at this stage.

Rooney's coaching journey began at Derby, of course, where he initially served as caretaker manager in November 2020 before taking the permanent role in January 2021 upon retiring from playing.

He stayed at Pride Park until June 2022, overseeing a win ratio of 29%, which remains his highest across all clubs. Rooney’s respective win ratios at Blues and Argyle were 13% and 20%, according to FotMob data.

Upon leaving the East Midlands, Rooney went back to DC United in America to manage in the MLS - yet he left them, again by mutual consent, after failing to reach their version of the playoffs.

Clearly, Rooney must still back himself as a manager - especially if he's willing to walk away from a reported paycheck that big - but perhaps the fans of Blues and Argyle in particular won't hold the same opinion.