Will Derby ever go up?

It seems whatever Derby County try to do, they just can't break out of the Championship and back into the Premier League, after eight years away from the big time.

After spending over £20 million across last season, their transfer strategy failed quite dramatically, as they were expected to storm the league, but ended up flopping out of the play offs, after a fairly quiet and average season.

Sacking Paul Clement, after seemingly doing quite well, added turmoil into the mixture, and after an initial decline, the Rams' form dipped and began to pick up again.

Their transfer business needs to be smart this summer if they really want to push forward to the Premier League, and it's clear that changes are needed ahead of next year, if they do want to gain promotion.

Here's what their starting XI could look like on the opening day of the season...

Goalkeeper - Scott Carson

Scott Carson sealed a move to Derby last summer following Wigan Athletic's relegation from the Championship. He endured a fairly decent start to life at the iPro Stadium, giving little reason to replace him.

He joined the club as a replacement for Lee Grant, who made numerous errors during the season beforehand, which eventually saw them drop out of the play offs.

There is little reason for Carson to be dropped out of the team, and he should retain his place in the side.

Right back - Ritchie De Laet

After receiving his Premier League medal at the end of last season, following a handful of appearances for Leicester City last year, De Laet may well be on the move.

He was fairly steady during his time with Middlesbrough and showed that he's a very, very strong Championship player, and could easily walk into and solidify Derby's defence. He's already been linked with a move to link up with former boss Nigel Pearson

Cyrus Christie is a good defender, but if Derby want to strengthen their back line they may have to drop him for another full back.

Centre back - Grant Hanley

Blackburn may have had a disappointing campaign last year, but their defence was pretty strong, with Shane Duffy and Grant Hanley both having excellent campaigns.

He's been linked with moves to Newcastle and Derby ahead of the summer, despite being Rovers' club captain and being at the club his entire club.

Blackburn could be partial to selling their star this summer due to financial troubles at the club, and the Rams could use another centre back within the ranks in order to boost their defensive ranks.

Centre back - Jason Shackell

The defender joined Derby last summer as part of their heavy summer spending, rejoining the club in a £3 million deal after three years away from the iPro.

He may now regret his move, with Derby underachieving last season and failing to make it out of the Championship, with former club Burnley ending up winning the entire division.

Derby are defensively solid and have some excellent options at the back, and with Shackell having a pretty solid season, there is little reason to remove him from the starting line up.

Left back - Marcus Olsson

The Swede joined Derby in January as they looked to make further additions to push themselves over the line to Premier League football, and had a fairly solid campaign with them.

He's already made a fairly enormous impression on the Rams faithful by netting a winner in the East Midlands derby against Nottingham Forest in dramatic style, a pretty good way to start your life as a Derby player.

There's little reason for Derby to bring in another left back as Olsson is an excellent Championship player, and I'm sure he'll be starting for the club come August.

Central midfield - Jacob Butterfield

As most of Huddersfield's players of the seasons tend to, Jacob Butterfield ditched the Terries last summer as Derby came calling, looking to beef up their midfield.

He's actually shown to be a very tidy, perhaps underrated player who's rebuilt his career after being pushed out by Middlesbrough, who won promotion themselves last year.

Butterfield is a great little player and could be extremely useful for Derby next year, with little reason for changing him up for another midfield man.

Central midfield - Matty James

Another Leicester City man, the midfielder failed to make a single appearance for the Foxes in their title winning season last year after a knee injury saw him miss the entirety of their year in the sun.

With the club at Champions League level now and bringing in players of that calibre, James may find himself on the way out of the King Power Stadium, and has also been linked with a reunion with manager Nigel Pearson.

Derby have an impressive array of talent in midfield but could a little extra in order to push up the table.

Right wing - Callum McManaman 

Wigan's struggles were dealt another blow in January 2015 when star man Callum McManaman moved on to Premier League side West Brom for a fee of around £3 million.

The winger has failed to make a real impression during his time in the midlands, only making two starts and ten substitute appearances last year.

Derby have already been linked with a move for the 25-year-old who could boost their already talented wide options, and he could use the confidence boost of playing back in the Championship.

Left wing - Johnny Russell

After moving to Derby from Dundee United in 2013, the Scotsman has become a key player for the Rams, especially last year during which he made 42 appearances and scored 11 goals.

He can play across the front line, including the left, where is left foot would be able to create some magic for whomever is up front.

Russell is a player who would walk into any Championship side and it would be crazy for Derby to take him out of the side next year, as he's an excellent, excellent player,

Number 10 - Sone Aluko

The Nigerian has been about in terms of clubs, joining Hull after a single season at Rangers where he scored eight goals, before helping the Tigers to promotion in his first season.

After three seasons in Yorkshire he was released after making 25 appearances in Hull's play off winning campaign, leading to interest from several clubs, including Derby.

His three goals proves he may not be an out and out striker, so perhaps he'd be more suited to a number 10 role.

Striker - Jonathan Kodjia

The African striker was linked with a move to Reading the January before his move to Bristol Rovers from Angers last summer, where he's been extremely successful in helping them survive during their return to the Championship.

He scored 20 goals for the season and finished as one of the top scorers, perhaps leading to plenty of interest this summer, including from Derby County.

The usually reliable Chris Martin failed to make too much of an impression last year, so more forward options would be a sensible idea for the Rams this summer.

Derby fans... Do you like this starting eleven? Who do you want to sign? Which players will leave this summer? Will Pearson lead you to the Premier League? Let us know in the comments below.