SOMETHING IS STIRRING AT DERBY COUNTY AND WE WENT ALONG TO FIND OUT ALL ABOUT IT
We are approaching the anniversary of John Eustace’s appointment at Derby County and the mood around the club’s Moor Farm training base is buoyant.
Derby are chasing a place in the Championship play-offs and fans are daring to dream, particularly after last week’s 5-0 thrashing of Bristol City, their biggest league away win since 1959.
The recent transfer window proved hugely successful and enhanced the feel-good factor, with Ipswich Town forward Sammie Szmodics a late arrival in the final hours on deadline day.
More on that mad dash later, but it is clear something is stirring at Derby – and Telegraph Sport was given exclusive access behind the scenes this week.
Crazy move vindicated
Derby’s grand rebuilding story should serve as a prime example of why supporters should never give up: four years ago many of those fans marched into the city centre in a show of support as the club teetered towards oblivion.
Local hero David Clowes then sprung into action with a takeover and now, before Saturday’s home game against Ipswich, Eustace is battling to keep a lid on expectations. “It can be a really exciting second half of the season and we want to enjoy these last 16 games,” says the 46-year-old, sitting in his office after a morning training session.
“We could have easily been back in League One this season, but we stayed up and that was a huge effort from everyone. We’ve made great progress but it’s important we don’t get carried away as this league can pinch you on the bum. Let’s see where we are with 10 games to go and maybe then we can have a different discussion.”
It now seems like a trick of the mind that Eustace was under heavy scrutiny this time last year for joining Derby. With his Blackburn team fifth in the Championship, and Derby 22nd, it seemed a crazy move, despite his Pride Park links, having finished his playing career there.
Now look at the contrast between the clubs, with Derby seventh and Rovers outside the relegation zone on goal difference. That £500,000 compensation bill for Eustace has proved a bargain.
“It was obviously questioned, leaving when I did, but I felt it was the right thing to do at the time,” he says. “Derby is a massive club with a huge history and I don’t think people outside the city realise that. The reason I came here was to help rebuild it, to stabilise it, then one day push to get into the Premier League. We might be a bit ahead of schedule at the moment.”
Aside from that thumping win at Bristol City, there are other notable achievements this season. Derby share the record of most away wins in the Championship with Hull City (eight) and are on the longest scoring run in the top four tiers of 20 consecutive games. Last year it took them until the 44th game to reach 45 points – this year they did it in 30.
On the day of our visit, the atmosphere feels very positive. It is a bitterly cold morning and Eustace is overseeing a tactical training session. Before the tactics, the players are put through quick fitness exercises and then split into two groups.
Eustace places a big emphasis on the work of his backroom staff, who are very close. Matt Gardiner is a long-time assistant whose main remit is set-pieces. Keith Downing and Steve Round are vastly experienced first-team coaches with Premier League pedigree.
Christoph Bühler is the latest arrival after joining as first-team tactical coach, and officially takes his first session on Thursday. Bühler has worked with David Wagner at Norwich and Huddersfield and will focus on opponents’ tactics and patterns of play.
Even with so many staff, Eustace is very hands-on with training. Before the session starts, it is Eustace putting out the training cones. As Gardiner takes a drill with attacking players and midfielders, Eustace waits for a break in play and shouts “if you risk it in those areas, go and get the ball back”.
One of the forwards in front of him is Szmodics, whose move to Derby went down to the wire on deadline day. The week before, Derby had a £3m bid rejected with Ipswich demanding twice that figure. Yet at 6pm a deal was revived, with Ipswich agreeing to allow Szmodics out on loan. Derby needed a deal sheet to push it through and it was somewhat frantic ahead of the 9pm cut-off, with head of football administration Clare Morris crucially important. The deal was ultimately a triumph of patience and holding nerve.
Derby will pay a small loan fee and the 30-year-old’s wages in full, with no option or obligation to sign him permanently. Szmodics is ineligible this weekend but is set to make his debut against Swansea on February 14. He is the latest of the former Blackburn congregation, and his best mate is Derby’s captain Lewis Travis.
Recruitment success
The transfer window is being regarded as a big positive. Derby moved out six players, saving themselves more than £1m in wages and other expenses, and signed five. One departure was Ebou Adams, a promotion hero from League One under Paul Warne, who joined Portsmouth for £500,000. The deal was structured cleverly with Derby to receive £375,000 up front and the rest to be paid in the summer.
There have been other shrewd signings alongside Szmodics and the work of recruitment chief Leigh Bromby cannot be overestimated. Bromby was appointed in April last year, joining on effectively a long-term loan from the recruitment agency he set up with former Norwich sporting director Stuart Webber and agent Darius Henderson, the former Watford striker.
His impact has been significant, working closely with scouts, analysts and chief executive Stephen Pearce. Fabian Unwin recently joined from Chelsea as data and analytics lead.
The success story from January is Oscar Fraulo, a £200,000 capture from Borussia Mönchengladbach. Fraulo’s signing, and the work that went into it, is a perfect example of the symmetry between different departments. Initially spotted by head of scouting Jon Howard, the Danish midfielder has already impressed.
Derry Murkin, a £1.1m recruit from FC Utrecht, was a long-term target identified through the scouting system, scoring highly on data such as set-pieces and athleticism.
Derby’s model is ultimately to find players with high potential and sell them on for a big profit. Two recent signings, forward Patrick Agyemang and goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterström, epitomise the club’s recruitment strategy. Agyemang joined from Charlotte FC for just over £7m in July and has nine goals this season. Derby’s valuation is now three times that amount. Derby are already braced for summer bids, as they are with Zetterström, who has big interest from the Premier League and abroad.
Experience has also been a focus, with the intention to find older, oven-ready players who can fit straight in and help develop Derby’s youngsters.
Former Luton striker Carlton Morris is their top scorer and has recently returned to training after a Lisfranc (mid-foot) injury. Travis, Eustace’s captain at Blackburn, is now flourishing after missing 11 weeks with a calf injury.
Eustace says: “I’ve always thought it would take four or five transfer windows to get the club back into the position where it should be. The turnover of players from the summer to January has been huge, but we feel we’re heading in the right direction.”
After training, players all sit together for meals in the canteen. On the menu for the day of our visit are the protein-packed meals of beef meatballs, bolognese and baked trout.
There is a big screen on the wall which displays video clips from training on repeat. Those clips focus on three parts: switches of play, combinations and counter-press. Intensity is a word associated with Eustace, who counts his former managers Tony Pulis, Steve McClaren, Sean Dyche and Gordon Strachan as close confidants.
It raises the question as to how he switches off, especially in such a chaotic league. After experiencing severe knee issues as a player, which forced him to retire aged 35, he admits it is not easy.
“I need two knee replacements. I probably needed them at the age of 40. Obviously at the age of 46 I’m still a bit young [for the operations] so it’s not ideal, but it’s something I have to get on with,” he says.
“I can’t go on the treadmill or play golf. I like to cycle, although it’s a bit difficult on the roads in the winter. We’ve got a pool at the training ground so I enjoy swimming as well. It is difficult to switch off, but those little moments certainly help.”
For now, the full focus is on Derby’s final 16 games, and the visit of a promotion contender in Ipswich. Victory could take Derby back into the top six, but you can rest assured that Eustace will be the last person getting carried away.
Recommended
Banning phones, rounds of golf and Tony Pulis on speed dial – inside Derby's great escape
2026-02-05T08:05:51Z