“The Rams are going up!” was the chant of choice. The acrid smell of pyrotechnics still lingering as thousands of Rams fans flooded the Pride Park turf at the conclusion of their 2023-24 League One campaign.
It hadn’t always been convincing, despite the recruitment strategy focussing on proven talents with experience at levels higher than League One; reckonings at both Shrewsbury and Stevenage in late October come to mind. But David Clowes stood by Paul Warne, dubbed ‘The League One Guardiola’ by some fans for his remarkable record of winning promotion from the third tier on each of his four full seasons in the division, and it paid off. Derby didn’t lose another league game in 2023. After another dip in results in January, the arrival of midfielder Ebou Adams on loan from Cardiff, the side was transformed and barely looked back, culminating in the catharsis that was the 2-0 win over Carlisle United on the final day.
Phase one of rebuilding a club so nearly burnt to the ground was complete, healing some of the wounds of the Rams that had been caught in the flames of administration less than two years earlier. However, many scars remain. As the Rams begin their first Championship campaign of the Clowes era, these act as a reminder, not that it’s needed, of the importance of the owner’s steady, sustainable and level-headed approach.
Though the top-level facilities mostly survived administration, hiring the right personnel to utilise them remains a work in progress. One of the most eye-catching elements of this has been the appointments of former England Cricket Head of Performance Mo Bobat as Head of Sporting Intelligence, alongside former National Selector Ed Smith. Despite their background being in cricket, the duo’s responsibilities will range from recruitment to sports science, with use of an exclusive Artificial Intelligence programme. They have joined head coach Paul Warne, academy manager Matt Hale, talent identification lead Mark Thomas and CEO Stephen Pearce as part of the ‘Football Executive Team’.
Make no mistake, the Derby County Football Club that returns to the Championship is nothing like the overly ambitious, financially reckless Derby of old. The aims for the season will simply be for it to be one of survival and stability, as the Rams look to secure their Championship status and give themselves a platform to build upon longer term.
The Manager
Head Coach Paul Warne was appointed by David Clowes less than three months into his ownership of the club. Warne’s values are one of the reasons why Clowes, who promised “integrity, transparency, and a straightforward way of doing business” when he saved the club was attracted to him. The former Rotherham boss clearly wears his heart on his sleeve, and has on many occasions highlighted the importance, in his eyes, of signing good people, who are the right fit for the club, as well as good footballers.
Though one of the main factors, if not the main factor, in the hiring of Warne was his record with the Millers, who he guided to promotion in each of his three attempts. As has been the case with Derby, his side didn’t play the most attractive football, with heavy reliance on relentless wing backs and balls being put into the mixer from wide areas. This fed into those away-end mutinies of last October, Warne’s tactics were ultimately effective, meaning fans could have little complaint.
What will now be levelled at Paul Warne is that his Championship record is as poor as his League One record is impressive – with Rotherham United having been relegated three times under his management. There will be concerns from some that if results don’t come, there will be less patience with the head coach from fans who aren’t enamoured with the style of play. But Warne has more than earned this chance, having guided Derby to a record-high points total in a league season (92). The resources at his disposal are considerably greater than what was available to him and his coaching staff in Yorkshire, with Rotherham often seen as dead certs to go down. This Derby team may well be underdogs for many in a scrap for survival, but the odds aren’t as steep as Warne faced previously. He relishes that underdog role. Galvanising a team to leave it all on the pitch is one of his strongest attributes. If Derby can play with the heart that they did at the end of last season, then with ‘the twelfth man’ behind them, and the opportunity to add some real Championship quality, then who knows? Can Paul Warne finally break his Championship survival hoodoo?
Transfers so far
In terms of playing staff, it has been a third consecutive summer of high turnover. One of the final day heroes Max Bird had already agreed a move Bristol City at the end of the January transfer window, returning to Derby on loan to complete the season. Now the 23-year-old will look to spread his wings at Ashton Gate, reunited with former teammates Haydon Roberts and Jason Knight.
Louie Sibley is another academy graduate who departed the club over the summer, joining fellow newly promoted side Oxford United. Sibley, 22, was offered a new deal, but it’s believed that the terms were lower than in his previous contract. Add to this, the desire to in midfield that he expressed in his first interview as a U’s player, as opposed to the wing back role he played for the majority of last season, and the argument that the move was best for all parties becomes more convincing.
The other big departure was that of Joe Wildsmith, the League One Golden Glove winner last season having turned down a new contract with the Rams during the 2023-24 season. The 28-year-old has joined fellow Championship outfit West Bromwich Albion where he will presumably play second fiddle to Alex Palmer, who won the second tier’s Golden Glove.
With the exception of Tyreece John-Jules, whose loan deal from Arsenal expired, the remaining first team players to leave were released at the end of their contracts, having joined Derby on free transfers in the previous couple of seasons. Midfielders Conor Hourihane and Korey Smith, both 33, have signed for League One sides in Barnsley and Cambridge United respectively. Goalkeeper Scott Loach, 36, has retired from playing professional football, whilst 34-year-old strikers Martyn Waghorn and Dwight Gayle, who were both signed to provide cover in attacking areas last season, are as of yet without a club.
There have, to date, been eight incomings for Paul Warne’s side – if you count the permanent arrival of winger Corey Blackett-Taylor on a free transfer from Charlton Athletic that was already confirmed when the 26-year-old arrived on an initial loan deal worth £300,000 in January. Further reinforcements up front have come in the form of striker Jerry Yates, loaned out for the season by Swansea City, and winger Kayden Jackson who was released by Ipswich Town. Yates will be hoping to recapture the form that saw him earn a £2.5 million move to South Wales a year ago, scoring 14 Championship goals in a relegated Blackpool side. Whilst Jackson was released by Ipswich following back-to-back promotions having been an impact substitute throughout with his electric pace a real challenge for tired defenders.
Rohan Luthra, who featured for a Derby as a trial isn’t in pre-season has been signed as a third choice goalkeeper. Formerly of Cardiff City, the 22 year-old spent time on loan at National League South outfit Slough Town last season.
One of the most anticipated signings in recent years has been that of Ebou Adams, the Gambian international whose energetic, tenacious play and infectious smile saw him rapidly endear himself to the Pride Park crowd after joining on loan from Cardiff in January. The midfielder has signed for a fee of around £500,000, with many seeing him as a key part of the midfield rebuild which has taken place in the off-season, with three other midfielders signed. Boyhood Derby fan Ben Osborn was the first, somewhat of a coup for a newly promoted Championship side having spent three of his five years at Sheffield United playing Premier League football. Dutch technician Kenzo Goudmijn, 22, left AZ Alkmaar for the Rams, whilst exciting-prospect David Ozoh, 19, has come to the East Midlands on a season-long loan deal from Crystal Palace.
How have Derby fared in Pre-Season?
Paul Warne’s side have had a mixed pre-season. There have been some impressive individual performances, particularly from Ozoh and Goudmijn in the middle, and right wing back Kane Wilson, but there have also been some eye-catchingly disappointing results. They returned to action with a routine 3-0 win at non-league Matlock Town. However, there was some gutting news in the days following, with 20-year-old defender Jake Rooney having picked up an injury at Causeway Lane that will keep him out for most of the first half of the season after missing almost all of the previous campaign with an ACL injury.
After this, the Rams flew out to Alicante for a warm weather training camp. It is believed that they lost to Portuguese second division side in a behind-closed-doors friendly, before requiring Sonny Bradley’s last-gasp header to beat League One Stockport 1-0 in forty-degrees heat at the Pinatar Arena.
Three consecutive losses to lower-league opposition followed, the first 4-0 away to Chesterfield who have just been promoted back to the Football League. It was a humbling night. A reminder that there is still much work to do. But three of the four goals were caused by errors from players who are unlikely to be regular starters this season.
At The New Meadow, Derby fell to a 2-1 defeat, though the line up was designed with more emphasis on building fitness, with square pegs in round holes, with the team continuing to look disjointed, particularly at the back. This trend continued as the Rams conceded four at Barnsley, but also scored three in a topsy-turvy game. For the first time in pre-season, Derby executed some fluid attacking moves with Nathaniel Mendez-Laing scoring twice.
Derby saved the best for last as they returned to Pride Park, beating LaLiga outfit Real Valladolid 2-1. Paul Warne switched to a 4-3-3 formation for the game, with the midfield three of Osborn, Goudmijn and Ozoh giving Derby good balance with the latter the standout. Having gone behind in the first half, despite conceding relatively few chances, two goals in two minutes from David Ozoh and substitute Kane Wilson saw the Rams come from behind.
How will Derby line up?
As far as I can see, there are two main formation options, each with a slight variation likely too.
Paul Warne has typically favoured a back three/five throughout his managerial career. For Derby that has tended to look like some form of 3-4-3, with one central striker and two wingers/attacking midfielders. At times last season, this could morph into more of a 3-4-1-2, with one winger going to join the number nine up front, and the other becoming a roaming number ten just behind them
The other option is the one that Paul Warne has admitted better suits his squad at present, a 4-3-3. This would allow the head coach to make maximum use of the midfield talent which has been by far the strongest point of Derby’s recruitment this summer, with two pacey wingers to provide a counter-attacking threat and get in behind opposition defences. At present, a more traditional 4-3-3 with one sitting midfielder feels most probable; though Kenzo Goudmijn can play as a number ten meaning a 4-2-3-1 is a possibility. There isn’t necessarily another natural option in the squad at present, but Warne has said that he wants another creative eight or ten.
Click on any of the three depth charts, illustrating the side in a 3-4-3, 4-3-3 and 4-2-3-1 to expand them.
Currently, Josh Vickers is the Rams’ main goalkeeper, with Rohan Luthra expected to be on the bench for now. Though with Luthra being signed as a third choice option, Warne will need another ‘keeper. The saga surrounding Swedish International Jacob Widell Zetterström is ongoing. We understand that personal terms have been agreed and that he has been to England for his medical, as BBC Radio Derby’s Dominic Dietrich confirmed to us on this week’s podcast. But the stumbling block remains as to when Djurgården will allow him to leave, with the Swedish club keen to keep the stopper until the end of the Europa Conference League Qualifiers. Trialist Rohan Luthra, who featured in pre-season, is expected to sign as a third-choice option.
At the back, Derby’s Player of the Season Curtis Nelson, 31, and Eiran Cashin, 22, formed a formidable partnership as part of the meanest defence in the EFL last season with a good blend of experience and youth. Sonny Bradley, meanwhile, didn’t have the best of seasons in League One, but did finish strongly in the final three games after returning from suspension over a headbutt. Warne had already stated that he wanted another centre half but doesn’t want someone to simply make up the numbers. Though he is unproven at Championship level, Jake Rooney has barely ever put a foot wrong in a Derby shirt, albeit in limited minutes. His injury is a blow and means that adding another central defender is now imperative.
In terms of full-backs, Ryan Nyambe is a Championship quality right full back, his importance reflected in the new three-year deal he signed over the summer. After initially signing as injury cover in September 2023, the Nambian International’s defensive nous saw him rapidly establish himself as a key player, putting in performances worthy of at least a seven out of ten every week. In a 3-4-3, he seems more likely to play as a right centre back, with exciting wing back Kane Wilson in front of him. Wilson will have less license to drive forward in a back four in the Championship than he did last year, but a partnership with Nyambe could facilitate that. On the other side, Craig Forsyth remains ever dependable at 35 after over a decade of service, more than competent at left back, left wing back or at centre back, and after a disappointing first season at Pride Park, Callum Elder, 29, has looked much better in pre-season, providing an injection of energy from left back. Ben Osborn is also a great option in the left wing back position, with the engine Warne demands as well as a great cross on him, with some of his best moments for Sheffield United coming in advanced areas.
The midfield has, as previously mentioned, gone from being a glaring hole in the squad following the departures of Bird, Hourihane, Smith, and for a period Adams, to becoming arguably Derby’s strongest area of the pitch. Despite Ebou Adams’ permanent return being the most important transfer to get done for many fans going into the window, with the arrivals too of Ozoh, Osborn and Goudmijn, he may now not even make the starting XI. Goudmijn is very much a tidy technical player with a range of passing a cut above anyone else in the squad. He’ll likely be the playmaker, with relentless runners around him. The left-sided number eight, or box-to-box midfielder role, feels earmarked for Osborn, with left wing back or even left winger roles that he could take up when Derby favour two sitting midfielders. Ebou Adams has the tenacity, energy and footballing intelligence to bring the best out of creators around him. Be it a crunching tackle or often something more subtle, such as a block or a little flick on a pass at the right moment. With his strength and power, he can drive the side up the pitch, and even offers a threat with late runs into the box. David Ozoh can also dominate a game physically, despite being just 19, with his 6' 3" frame. He appears to be more accomplished on the ball than Adams, though and with his height offers more threat in the opposition box. The two of them playing together in the middle is a tantalising prospect.
Also in midfield, Liam Thompson, 22, may be small in stature, but can have a big impact on the pitch. Another player Warne likes for his hard work in the press, even doing so from a number ten role at times. He thrived when thrown in at the deep end when the Rams were in administration and will be a good squad option providing he isn’t loaned out, as I imagine Darren Robinson, 19, will be.
On the wings, Nathaniel Mendez-Laing was Derby’s talisman last season, with nine goals and 16 assists he was rightly included in the League One Team of the Season and was hard done by to not be named Derby’s Player of the Season. Though capable of playing as a number ten, the Guatemalan international is best out wide, be it on the left or the right, able to isolate a defender and use his pace to beat them one-on-one. Corey Blackett-Taylor will be looking to kick on after a slow start to his Derby career. A direct wide man who also likes to take players on and is comfortable on either flank, he scored eight times and got six assists for Charlton last season before his transfer but is unproven in the second tier. Kayden Jackson can play up front, but the former Ipswich Town man is best utilised as a winger with his frightening pace. But he can lack end product. Tom Barkhuizen is another versatile option, able to play across the front line, but like last season, looks set to be a backup.
Up front, James Collins was Derby’s main striker last season, but with the addition of Jerry Yates, and Warne still wanting another striker, may be more of a rotation option. The 33-year-old does an awful lot of hard graft out of possession, pressing from the front and occupying opposition defenders with his aerial presence. Jerry Yates will miss the first three games of the season through suspension, having been sent off for Swansea on the final day of last season, but looks to be first choice at present. Yates is maybe best described as a pressing forward – hard-working and constantly getting into good positions. The Englishman just needs those to translate to goals as they did at Bloomfield Road.
Dajaune Brown is a very promising youngster who will probably go out on loan, following a very successful spell at Gateshead in the National League last season, whilst Conor Washington, 32, will look to revitalise a Derby career which has been plagued by injuries. Like right-sider Joe Ward, 28, who there is no obvious place for in a 4-3-3 and Tyrese Fornah, who struggled to nail down a place in the side last season, he seems to be one of the ‘forgotten men’.
Where will Derby finish?
I’m often not one for predictions, and when I do, they are generally on the cautious side, but I do believe Derby will stay up. There is still work to do in terms of squad building, with a couple of goalkeepers, a centre back, a creative midfielder and a striker wanted by Paul Warne, but with most importantly a good goalkeeper brought in, and effective use of the Premier League loan market to help fill remaining positions, which I believe is what Derby are waiting for, they should have enough to avoid the drop. It might not be pretty, but survival on the pitch, and stability off it, are crucial for the club’s long-term plan. Those are the watchwords that you will probably get fed up of hearing from me.
I might get them on a t-shirt!
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