Glenn Hoddle believes Wayne Rooney has made an error by ending his playing career midway through the season to become the manager of Derby on a permanent basis.
The 35-year-old announced on Friday he was ending his 19-year career on the pitch to take charge of the Rams until the summer of 2023 after signing a two-and-a-half-year deal with the side currently sat in the Championship relegation zone.
But in order to focus solely on his new role - which has come following an interim period after Phillip Cocu was sacked - he has decided to hang up his boots, having become the record goalscorer for both Manchester United and England during his career.
But speaking to BT Sport, former Tottenham and England midfielder and boss Hoddle believes the former forward will come to regret the decision because Derby will need his experience on the pitch towards the end of the season.
'He has hung his boots up, but for me I think that is a slight mistake for this year,' Hoddle said.
'I think he will see that later on, he should have kept himself registered.
'They are down the bottom fighting for every point and they are gonna need an experienced head for the last 20 minutes of certain games come March and April.
'I think he has made a slight little mistake there. If he was asking for my advice, I would keep myself fit. At the end of the day, there are going to be key moments, especially if you are fighting in the relegation zone.
'It is hard, player-management, I don't mean it for the long-term for him, but I think he has missed a trick here, because they are going to need him, maybe the last 20 minutes [of games], to settle the team down with his experience.'
Hoddle himself was a player-manager for both Swindon and Chelsea between 1991 and 1996 before becoming a full-time boss with England.
But the 63-year-old warned Rooney of the different challenges he faces as a manager, but believes the presence of Derby technical director and former England boss Steve McClaren will be of great value to him.
'In his management scenario now he has got to think for 50 people, not just Wayne Rooney,' Hoddle added. 'That is the big difference.
'He has had a little bit of a taste of it of course and he has got Steve McClaren there to lean on and have advice from.
'He has got a nice little team there, I wish him all the very best but it is not going to be easy.
'You have got to get across very quickly all these ideas that he wants to put into that team.'
Source: m.allfootballapp.com