Highs and lows of the Cocu reign

IT was not all struggle and trouble for manager Phillip Cocu at Derby County. Here are five highs from his 16 months in charge – as well as five of the lows.

Huddersfield Town 1 Derby 2 August 5, 2019

Tom Lawrence produced two quality finishes that Wayne Rooney would have been proud of to give Derby and their new manager a winning start to the Championship campaign.

Pre-match was dominated by the breaking story that former England captain Rooney was to join the Rams in a player-coach role.

But Lawrence was the headline after the game thanks to his fine double in the first half of the 2-1 victory at the John Smith’s Stadium.

His goals put Derby two up before Huddersfield – back in the division after two seasons in the Premier League – reduced the deficit through Karlan Grant’s penalty.

Derby 2 Charlton Athletic 1 December 30, 2019

Recent form, coupled with their position in the Championship table, highlighted how much the Rams needed a win and so there was great relief when they beat Charlton Athletic in a pulsating contest.

Derby were winless in seven and had failed to win their previous three matches at Pride Park Stadium.

The worrying run had seen them drop to 20th but Jason Knight’s double gave the Rams a 2-1 success – and they achieved it despite having to play with 10 men from the 17th minute, after Krystian Bielik was sent off.

It was a Derby team performance full of determination, togetherness and stamina as well as ability.

Derby 4 Stoke City 0 January 31, 2020

Phillip Cocu wanted a response from his Derby team following the defeat to bottom club Luton Town and they delivered in style by dispatching Stoke City 4-0.

The Rams boss admitted he was finding it difficult to put what happened at Luton behind him but his scowls turned to a beaming smile with this victory, the biggest in his time as Derby manager.

Goals from Martyn Waghorn – his ninth of the season – and Chris Martin in the first half put Derby in the driving seat.

Rooney, who produced a masterclass display on the night, grabbed the third with a classy free kick before Jayden Bogle scored his first goal of the season to complete an emphatic and richly-deserved win.

Derby 3 Blackburn Rovers 0 March 8, 2020

Derby brushed off the blow of being without injured skipper Rooney to sweep Blackburn Rovers aside.

The 3-0 victory at Pride Park Stadium lifted the Rams into the top half of the Championship and put them within five points of the top six with nine League matches remaining.

Louie Sibley marked his first League start with his first senior goal, a spectacular strike to put Derby one up.

Martin increased the Rams’ lead shortly before half-time and the striker scored his second and Derby’s third with a late penalty to go into double figures for the campaign.

Millwall 2 Derby 3 June 20, 2020

Cocu said a fast start to the Championship restart following the coronavirus outbreak was crucial for Derby if they were to challenge for a top-six finish.

The players heeded the manager’s message and delivered a 3-2 victory over Millwall at The Den.

Derby remained 12th but the gap between themselves and the playoff places was down to three points with eight games remaining.

Sibley dominated the headlines thanks to his impressive hat-trick in what was only his second start in the League.

LOW MARKS Brentford 3 Derby 0 August 31, 2019

The new season was only a month old. It was still very early in the campaign and in Cocu’s tenure as manager.

Far, far too early for alarm bells to be ringing but there were some noisy clangs at Griffin Park that could not be ignored.

It is never a good sign when words such as “ashamed, arrogance and attitude” are aired. When they are aired before August is out, there has to be concern.

Derby were handed a football lesson by Brentford, especially in the first half.

They were out-fought physically much of the time, outplayed for much of a painful afternoon and out-thought tactically. Only their wastefulness saved the Rams from humiliation.

Charlton Athletic 3 Derby 0 October 19, 2019

A different area of London, south rather than west, but the outcome was depressingly similar.

Six games on from Brentford, it was Charlton Athletic who sent Derby packing 3-0.

And, like at Brentford, Derby were fortunate to escape with only a three-goal defeat.

Whether their performance was as bad or worse than the one at Brentford is a matter of opinion. What cannot be argued is the fact it was bad.

Luton Town 3 Derby 2 January 28, 2020

The level of anger simmering within Cocu was not at the level seen after Derby’s heavy defeat at Brentford but the manager was in no mood to hide his feelings after watching his team crash to defeat at the hands of the Championship’s bottom club.

Derby led, fell behind, got level and then shot themselves in the foot by conceding a late third goal to lose 3-2 at Kenilworth Road.

Cocu cut a deeply frustrated figure afterwards. “Ridiculous” was how he described the manner of defeat. He was being kind because Derby appeared to have matters under control when they switched off.

Derby 0 Blackburn Rovers 4 September 26, 2020

Defeat meant Derby had made their worst start to a League season in 28 years.

This was a painful setback. Cocu called it “unacceptable” and questioned the attitude, passion and desire of the performance against Blackburn Rovers.

Neither the manager nor the skipper attempted to make excuses, nor could they, because the 90 minutes and the stats were damning enough.

Rovers had 23 efforts at Derby’s goal and 10 on target – a chastening set of figures for a home team – and goalkeeper David Marshall was Rams’ man of the match by some distance.

Rovers, but for Marshall, could have scored six or seven and it would not have flattered them.

Derby 0 Barnsley 2 November 7, 2020

Derby slumped to the bottom of the Championship.

Six points from 11 League games is a pitiful return and the manager, his coaching staff and the players were all responsible for the mess.

The Rams are not where they are by accident or by bad luck. Derby are there because they deserve to be. Something had to change.

It was a sad end to manager Cocu’s reign, more so because he had to watch from home because he had to self-isolate.