Robbie Savage pays the price of Derby failure - but at least someone has benefited

A spokeswoman for a charity which is believed to have received a four-figure donation from the midfielder has expressed her gratitude.

The Derby faithful will be less thankful. Savage has done nothing to justify his £30,000-a-week wages since signing from Blackburn and, as Sportsmail revealed last week, has been turning up for training in a £160,000 Mercedes supercar in club colours.

But his gesture, quirky as it may be, is undeniably decent.

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The Derby skipper has made the donation because his performances have not been up to scratch, according to a source close to the player.

The former Wales midfielder paid the money to Midlands-based charity When You Wish Upon A Star which helps terminally-ill children fulfil long-held ambitions.

A spokeswoman said the charity relies heavily on donations and added: "We are grateful to all of our supporters. We would like to thank the Derby County player for making the donation. It was a wonderful surprise.

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"The money will be used to help us grant wishes for children with life-threatening illnesses."

A source close to the footballer said: "Robbie feels that he hasn't performed on the pitch and he feels he wants to give something back to the community.

"It was very much his choice. He wants to give something back."

This is Savage's second good deed in less than a week. On Saturday he picked up two Rams fans in his Mercedes as they stood at a bus stop on their way to Pride Park. He then gave them two tickets to the game against Sunderland.

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The 33-year-old took a pay cut when he joined Derby for £1.5million on a two-year deal from Blackburn in the January transfer window and was made captain of the club by manager Paul Jewell.

A spokesman for Derby confirmed a player at the club had donated money to the charity.