22/02/2023

Wayne Rooney will face former side Manchester United in the FA Cup fifth round after Derby beat Northampton in a fourth-round replay.

Rooney has three goals in eight games for Derby
Wayne Rooney will face former side Manchester United in the FA Cup fifth round after helping Championship side Derby County beat Northampton of League Two 4-2 in a fourth-round replay.
Rooney hit his side’s fourth from the penalty spot in the second half.
Andre Wisdom and Duane Holmes scored in the first half for Derby before Nick Adams got one back after the restart.
Jack Marriott headed in a third and Rooney made it 4-1 before Sam Hoskins scored a late penalty for Northampton.
The Rams will host Manchester United in the week commencing 2 March.
In-form Rooney ready for reunion
Derby have lost just once since Rooney joined at the start of January
It will be the first time that Rooney – United and England’s all-time top scorer – has faced his former side since playing for Everton in a 2-0 defeat at Goodison on 1 January, 2018.
Playing as a deep-lying midfielder, the 34-year-old has been a key player for Derby since joining Philip Cocu’s side at the start of January.
The Rams have won five and lost just one of the eight games he has been involved in, while his latest goal was his third in as many games for the club.
Rooney played a pivotal role in Derby’s 1-0 win against Premier League side Crystal Palace in the third round and was once again involved in most of this game’s key moments.
It was from his corner that the hosts took the lead as David Cornell failed to deal with the delivery and Wisdom pounced on the loose ball to score his first goal for Derby and his first since his debut for Liverpool in a Europa League tie against Young Boys eight years ago.
Apart from a brief spell in the first half, Derby were in complete control of the first half and deservedly added a second when Holmes was put through by Scott Malone, drew out the keeper before side-footing home.
Out of nowhere, however, the visitors halved the deficit when the Derby defence was caught half asleep soon after the start of the second half with Adams driving the ball in from a decent cross.
But Derby restored their two-goal advantage when Marriot headed powerfully at goal and, although David Cornell got a strong hand to it, the ball had just gone over the goalline.
Northampton pressed to try and set up a tense finish but hopes of comeback were ended when a foul on Lawrence presented Rooney with the chance to get on the scoresheet and he made no mistake with confident spot-kick into the bottom corner.
The visitors then converted a penalty of their own when Andy Williams was brought down inside the box in the final 10 minutes and, although Hoskins converted, it was to be nothing more than a consolation for the visitors.