Norwich City 0-1 Derby County: Wayne Rooney scores winner after Teemu Pukki missed penalty

Wayne Rooney’s sublime late free kick punished Teemu Pukki’s foul penalty as Derby collected his first points of the championship season with a big win at Carrow Road.

Pukki had a chance to put Norwich ahead early in the second half after George Evans handled a shot from Onel Hernandez, but the Finnish striker slipped on the penalty that hit the crossbar.

Norwich could still have salvaged a point, but former Canarias goalkeeper David Marshall made a superb save to thwart Jordan Hugill’s close-range header.

Derby boss Phillip Cocu made five changes to the team that lost 4-0 at home to Blackburn seven days earlier – the Rams’ third loss in a row – and his move to a mostly defensive formation worked.

They were under the cosh for the first 15 minutes, the same period they conceded against the Rovers three times, and only Nathan Byrne’s goal-saving tackle denied Hernandez a square-ball touch from Pukki.

But Norwich began to run out of ideas until Evans’s stupidly raised arm seemed to have given them the upper hand, only for Pukki to literally slip out of the way.

The foul continued a frustrating 2020 for the forward, who has scored only once in his last 19 games, having followed a 29-goal championship campaign with 11 in Norwich’s short tenure in the top flight.

Derby perked up and, shortly after substitute Morgan Whittaker’s run and shot forced a good save from Krul, Rooney, who had blown two previous volley opportunities, beat the Dutch keeper with a set piece.

Norwich, who again left midfielder Todd Cantwell out of his squad amid rumors of a move to Leeds United, could have scored on either side of the Rooney winner, but Marshall denied Max Aarons’ volley and Hugill’s late header.

Canarias, who face a battle to hold on to Aarons, Cantwell and Emi Buendia in this transfer window after also agreeing to let defender Ben Godfrey leave Everton for £ 25m, have now failed to score in 14 of their last 18 league games.