‘Cheek to complain!’ - Wayne Rooney’s 15-game reign as manager & presence of NFL legend Tom Brady in the boardroom assessed by former Man Utd & Birmingham star Dwight Yorke

Manchester United legend Rooney lasted just 15 games in the St Andrew’s hot-seat before seeing a forgettable 83-day spell as Blues boss brought to a close. He picked up just two wins, with the “no fear football” demanded by those in the boardroom nowhere to be seen.

Quizzed on whether Rooney was unlucky or never the right man for the job, fellow ex-Red Devils striker Yorke – speaking in association with Footy Accumulators – told GOAL: “Was Wayne Rooney the wrong choice for Birmingham? I go back to what I’ve said before, when you have chances in life, you have to take them. There’s few people who have had as many chances as Rooney, but when you look at Wazza’s managerial career it’s been OK - not amazing. They said he did remarkable at Derby but it was average, he went to DC United and had a 27% win rate and then he walked into a job at Birmingham. I’m all for giving people a chance but then you have to grab it. You can’t be taking a team from sixth to 20th and then claim you didn’t take your chance. They were in sixth and they’re now 20th and he had the cheek to complain! You’ve got to stabilise whatever you’re doing and find a way, but I’m happy he was given a chance, he just didn’t take it.”

Yorke spent time with Birmingham in the 2004-05 campaign and said of seeing NFL legend Brady – a man with seven Super Bowl rings to his name – become an investor in the West Midlands: “It’s great that football is a big industry, a billion dollar industry and everyone wants a piece of the pie. Everywhere around the world football is on people’s doorsteps and it’s a huge business if you’re successful. If you get promoted to the Premier League, it’s a massive financial gain and I can understand why people want to part of it. Celebrity is just another addition to improve your profile at the club and that’s all good. It’s up to the players and the managers to then deliver for them as they’ve given the club a lift. Birmingham needs it. They brought in Wazza to give them a lift but he didn't get results or find a way.”

Birmingham have now turned to Tony Mowbray for managerial inspiration, with the former Celtic and Sunderland boss set to open his reign in a home date with Swansea – as the Blues enter that game perched just six points above the Championship relegation zone.