It’s been a year since Derby County confirmed the appointment of former Birmingham City manager Gary Rowett.
Here, we take a look at five of Rowett’s best moments in charge of the Rams to date.
1) Birmingham City 1-2 Derby County
This was Rowett’s first return to St Andrews since his controversial sacking. The game was delicately poised at 1-1 until the very last minute of the match. Derby had gone ahead through an unfortunate own goal from Blues keeper Tomasz Kuszczak but Che Adams managed to level for the hosts. Cue Thomas Ince to turn a single point into three. The now Huddersfield Town man latched onto a long ball and slotted past Kuszczak to gift the Rams all the points.
2) The return of Tom Huddlestone
Gary Rowett made a number of impressive signings during the summer window including Sam Winnall from Sheffield Wednesday and Tom Lawrence from Leicester City. But none were as impressive than the return of former player Tom Huddlestone from Hull City. The Rams were crying out for some depth in midfield and the return of Huddlestone as well as the arrival of Joe Ledley have helped the Rams push for promotion this year. Huddlestone was previously at Derby County before he was bought by Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur.
3) Derby County 5-0 Hull City
The Rams blew away the Tigers in a battle at Pride Park which saw the very best of Rowett’s side. This was the first time that the Rams had hit five under Rowett. Braces from talisman Matej Vydra and Bradley Johnson as well as a Curtis Davies goal saw the Rams take utter control of the tie. This was arguably the best that Derby had played under Rowett during his tenure. The victory lifted them to 4th in the Sky Bet Championship and in the process, they knocked their bitter rivals out of the play-off places.
