Soccer: Birmingham City fires manager Wayne Rooney
Jan. 2 (UPI) -- Birmingham City, the English soccer team partially owned by Tom Brady, fired manager Wayne Rooney on Tuesday, the club announced.
The Blues also fired first-team coach Carl Robinson. Professional development coach Steve Spooner will serve as interim manager while the Blues search for a permanent replacement for Rooney.
"Unfortunately, Wayne's time with us did not go as planned and we have decided to move in a different direction," Birmingham City CEO Garry Cook said in a news release.
"The search for a successor begins with immediate effect and we will update supporters when we have further news."
Rooney started his tenure as Blues manager in October. He lost his first three games and posted an overall record of 2-9-4 during his 15-game tenure.
The Blues lost 3-0 to Leeds United on Monday in Leeds. They sit in 20th place in the Championship, a second-tier league in England.
"Football is a results business -- and I recognize they have not been at the level I wanted them to be," Rooney wrote in a statement posted to his social media accounts. "However, time is the most precious commodity a manager requires and I do not believe 13 weeks was sufficient to oversee the changes that were needed."
Rooney said it will take him some time to "get over this setback."
"I have been involved in professional football, as either a player or manager, since I was 16," Rooney wrote. "Now, I plan to take some time with my family as I prepare for the next opportunity in my journey as a manager."
Rooney, 38, was manager of League One club Derby County from 2020 to 2022. He stepped down from that role on June 25, 2022. Rooney was hired less than a month later to manage D.C. United. Rooney parted ways with the MLS club in October.
Knighthead Capital Management, co-founded by Tom Wagner, bought Birmingham City in July. Brady purchased a minority stake in the team less than a month later.
The Blues were 5-3-3 before Rooney took over. They are now 7-12-7 and in danger of relegation. Their 28 points are the fifth-fewest in the league. The three teams that finish with the fewest points at the end of the season will be relegated to League One.
The Blues finished 17th last season in the Championship. They placed 20th in 2021-22. The Blues were relegated from the Premier League after the 2010-11 season.
They will face Hull City in an FA Cup match at 10 a.m. EST Saturday in Hull, England.
