Former Birmingham City, Derby County and Millwall boss Gary Rowett has held talks with Rotherham United over potentially becoming the new head coach, according to reports.
The Millers made the difficult decision to remove Matt Taylor from his position as first-team manager prior to the November international break, with the side sitting third from bottom, four points below safety.
Having picked up successive draws against fellow relegation battlers Queens Park Rangers and promotion chasers Ipswich Town, a 5-0 defeat away at Watford was the final nail in the coffin for the ex-Exeter City boss.
Club chairman Tony Stewart admitted that the decision was solely results-based to give Rotherham the best chance of staying in the Championship possible [quotes via the BBC]:
“It was felt by myself and the board that we had to act now by making a managerial change in order to give ourselves the best possible chance of retaining our Championship status this season.”
The South Yorkshire club’s hierarchy have been working hard to find the right successor for Taylor and have begun the interview process to appoint a new manager at the New York Stadium, according to the Rotherham Advertiser.
The outlet have claimed that the club have had contact with Gary Rowett, who was recently dismissed from his position at Millwall back in October, while ex-Wigan Athletic boss Leam Richardson is also on the list.
Rowett has acted as a solid pair of hands in the second tier, having guided Derby County and Birmingham City to sixth and seventh in the table before losing his job on both occasions while Millwall missed out on the playoff places by one point last season.
At Birmingham, the former defender held a win rate of 39.6% which was just slightly lower than his 43.3% ratio at Pride Park.
Writer’s View
This would be an excellent appointment by Rotherham United should they pull off a deal. Rowett knows the league inside and out and has constantly helped teams to punch above their weight.
While QPR brought in a relatively unknown manager, new to English football, the Millers are looking to go down a safer route and there is no better option available right now besides perhaps Neil Warnock than Rowett to keep the team up.
