• Former England captain still under contract with DC United • Talks with Rooney’s agent have already taken place

Derby County have held talks with the former England captain Wayne Rooney over a potential player-coach role. The 33-year-old still has more than two seasons left on his DC United contract but Derby’s owner, Mel Morris, believes Rooney could inspire a squad which went so close to promotion under Frank Lampard last season.

Derby appointed the former Barcelona midfielder Phillip Cocu as manager last month on a four-year contract following Lampard’s move to Chelsea.

Initial talks between Derby and Rooney’s agent, Paul Stretford, have taken place and Morris is expecting more discussions in the near future.

The former Everton and Manchester United striker, who is England’s all-time record scorer with 53 goals in 120 appearances for his country, has made little secret of his desire to move into management and would be keen on a return to England.

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“I’m taking the steps to get my badges completed and when I finish playing I’ll see what opportunities come up,” Rooney said.

“There’s already offers which have been made, but at the minute I’m still a player and I want to enjoy playing, and then I’ll see which offers are right when I do finish.”

Asked if he had been contacted by clubs from England or the United States, he added: “Yeah, both. There’s an opportunity for me to go into management straight away and when I do hang my boots up, that decision will be made on what the ambition of the club is first of all, and what my ambitions are and what’s right for both myself and that particular team.”

Derby won 2-1 at Huddersfield in their opening Championship fixture on Monday evening. Two first-half goals from Tom Lawrence ultimately proved enough despite a Karlan Grant penalty for the hosts. The result meant that for the first time, all three sides that were relegated from the Premier League the previous season lost their opening Championship games.

Lawrence’s first came after an unfortunate defensive error from home debutant Tommy Elphick, but he deserved full credit for his second – a well-taken effort from the edge of the box.

Kieran Dowell’s clumsy challenge on Juninho Bacuna in the penalty area opened the door for Grant – the Terriers’ top scorer last season with only four goals – to reduce Derby’s lead from the spot.

Cocu, speaking after the Huddersfield win, said of Rooney: “At the moment I can’t say anything. We’re working on completing the team and I cannot say anything about names before things are done.

“We have a lot of players who could be an asset for the team. You always try to get the best you can with the resources available at the club.

“A few more days and hopefully I can tell you something more.”