Stoke City manager Gary Rowett has insisted that he has never been prouder as a manager after his side's 2-1 home win over former club Derby County on Wednesday night, reports the Stoke Sentinel.

It was the first meeting between Rowett and the Rams following his departure from Pride Park in the summer, and it was an, as expected, hotly contested affair at the Bet365 Stadium.

Stoke led in the first-half through Sam Clucas, before a Peter Etebo red-card for Stoke and a sublime Harry Wilson equaliser swinged the pendulum in Derby's favour - before another former Ram, Tom Ince sealed all three points for the Potters late on.

After the game, Rowett said: "It was definitely the gutsiest performance of the season, brilliant win,”

“I don’t think as manager of anyone I have been prouder - we had to be brave at 1-1 and got our reward."

The win leaves Stoke sitting 12th in the Championship table after a six-game unbeaten run, and Rowett's men find themselves sitting five points off the playoff places.

The Verdict

What a night it would have been for Rowett - he would have absolutely loved getting one over on Derby after the level of abuse he received all game. It would have been disappointing night from a Derby perspective - there looked like there would only be one winner after the red-card, but fair play to them, they dug in and got their reward.