Paul Jewell has been told that his job as manager of Derby County will not be affected by allegations of an extra-marital affair that emerged over the weekend. Adam Pearson, the chairman of football at Pride Park, said that this was an “old story” and that Jewell would be given support to get on with moulding a side equipped to win promotion from the Coca-Cola Championship next season.

Derby, bottom of the Barclays Premier League, have not won since Jewell took charge in November after taking six months out of the game amid reports that the stress of managing Wigan Athletic was affecting his marriage. Jewell and Ann-Marie, married since 1987, have two teenage children and live in West Yorkshire, although the former Bradford City and Wigan manager also has a flat in Derby to be near his work.

“This won’t affect our relationship with Paul Jewell at all,” Pearson said. “Obviously, the story is very old, from six years ago, and it is a private matter for Paul to deal with in the confines of his own family.

“He has worked very hard since he came to Derby County and a lot of what he is putting in place behind the scenes can only benefit the club in the future. He’s very upset today and he’ll have to deal with this as he sees fit. We certainly want to give him the privacy to do that.”

With the players having a scheduled day off today, Jewell is due to take training tomorrow morning.