A takeover of Derby County could be getting closer as Wayne Rooney revealed that a preferred bidder is set to be named on Friday by the administrators.

The Rams have been under the control of advisory firm Quantuma since the end of September when Mel Morris decided that he could no longer fund the club.

21 points worth of deductions followed, sending County to the bottom of the Championship table and nearly four months into the administration process there's still not been an individual or consortium chosen to enter a period of exclusivity.

USA-based businessman Chris Kirchner was thought to be the front-runner until he pulled out of the race last month, and now ex-Newcastle chief Mike Ashley is thought to be lining up a bid for the troubled club.

It was thought that potential legal action from Middlesbrough and Wycombe Wanderers, who are both seeking financial damages over Derby's financial breaches, was slowing down the process in terms of naming a preferred bidder.

Rooney though has confidence that the bidder Quantuma prefer will be finalised tomorrow so a takeover can proceed.

The Verdict

This is good news for Derby fans, players and staff alike who all want the club out of administration as soon as possible.

The sooner that Rooney can press forward with freshening his squad up the better and he has a better chance of doing that when a new owner comes in.

He's done miracles with a skeleton squad up to now and there must be a lot of stress and pressure on him - especially when bids are coming in for his players.

An end seemingly is in sight though for this saga - but if Mike Ashley is named as the preferred bidder then that could be a whole other story in itselfl