Wayne Rooney’s Derby debut overshadowed by teammates not being paid latest wages but club says they will r

Derby insist all their players will be paid today following reports they did not receive their latest wages which were due in their bank accounts on New Year’s Eve.

The Championship club had been expecting a new investment deal to be completed before the end of December.

However, that had not been signed off which caused a delay in the salary payments.

But a Derby spokesperson said all outstanding wages would be paid today.

It had been reported by the Daily Mail that Derby’s playing staff had been told of the delay, while the club have responded by insisting it is ‘not a major issue’.

It is understood cash from the new investment had been expected on New Year’s Eve, but there had been a delay due to the holiday period.

Club owner and chairman Mel Morris revealed in May that he was working to bring in new investment and it was reported that he has been in talks with a consortium headed by Henry Gabay, the co-founder and chairman of Duet Group, an asset management company.

This has somewhat overshadowed Wayne Rooney’s return to English football with the Manchester United and England legend set to make his Rams debut when they take on Barnsley tonight.

Rooney agreed an 18-month deal to join the club as player-coach in August while he was still at Major League Soccer side DC United.

He took his place in the dugout as coach at the end of November for the home draw against QPR, but has not been eligible to play until the opening of the transfer window on January 1.

Following Derby’s prior match against Charlton on December 30, Morris told talkSPORT of his excitement to see Rooney make his debut.

Morris said: “It will be fantastic to see Wayne playing here – it will be a big, big occasion for us.

“It will be a great game and it has lifted the whole town; you could hear them singing Wayne’s name tonight so it will be a big lift for us.

“It couldn’t come at a better time as a lot of injuries have plagued us this season, so we will need every man we can get. Wheeling out Wayne Rooney sounds like a fantastic opportunity.”

And when asked by Jim White about whether he’s on the edge of his seat, Morris added: “Without a doubt, as are most fans here.

“I think tonight’s crowd was 26,000 [vs Charlton], but I suspect we will have a few thousand more than that on Thursday.

“Wayne has that affect. He’s very humble, but doesn’t pull his punches. He’s just great to have around.

“Let’s hope he has a big impact, and I’m sure he will.”