LONDON, England (CMC) – The signing of free agent Ravel Morrison has been like “a breath of fresh air” for English Championship outfit Derby County , according to Manager Wayne Rooney.

The Manchester-born Reggae Boyz midfielder has been training with Derby since July and played in a number of preseason friendlies for the Rams.

The deal to sign 28-year-old Morrison on a one-year deal was completed on Saturday.

“He has been brilliant, he has been a breath of fresh air and I could see in the other players’ eyes when I told them Ravel was signing, you could see the happiness in them. I think he will be an important player this season,” Rooney said.

Morrison, who has made three appearances for the Reggae Boyz since making his debut last November, began his career with Manchester United after coming through their youth system, and has played for West Ham, Birmingham, Queens Park Rangers, and Cardiff City since.

A former England Under-21, he was released by Dutch side ADO Den Haag in January this year when his contract was terminated by mutual agreement.

Morrison was at Pride Park after signing his contract to watch Derby take on Huddersfield in the championship season opener on Saturday which ended 1-1.

Rooney believes Morrison can become a key figure in Derby’s team, which narrowly avoided relegation on the final day of last season.

Asked if signing Morrison was a gamble, Rooney said: “I can speak about question marks which a lot of people have had about him. I think a lot of people are jumping on the bandwagon with that, but I can speak about him as a person.

“Since he has been at the club he has lifted the standard of training, he has lifted his teammates and he is a great person to have around the training ground.

“A lot of the staff have said to me how surprised they have been with him, but sometimes that is the stigma that gets put against a player’s name.

“I can manage him. I know I can manage him, that is not an issue.

“I have known him since he was a young boy. I get the questions [about him], I do. I am not sitting here and saying those questions are wrong because there have been issues in the past.

“I was working very hard on Friday night with him and his agent to get this over the line, and he was desperate to come in,” Rooney said.