Derby County have endured a frustratingly inconsistent start to the campaign, with Phillip Cocu’s side winning six and losing seven of their opening 20 Championship matches leaving them in 16^th place in the table.

Cocu’s side have enjoyed a promising record at home in the Championship, picking up five wins from their last six matches on home soil to give them a platform to build some success from this campaign, while the Rams have also managed to record four clean sheets in those six matches.

However, Derby’s form on their travels has been very poor by contrast, with a 1-0 defeat at Blackburn Rovers on Saturday making it five successive away defeats for the Rams, which has seen them fail to build any real momentum to climb the league table.

Derby will be in need of some reinforcements in January in terms of some creativity being added to the squad and also some cover at centre half, but there could also be a few players who face an uncertain future at the club heading into the January window.

Here then we take a look at FOUR players who face an uncertain future at Derby heading into January

Kieran Dowell

Dowell has so far failed to really stamp his authority on Derby’s midfield since arriving in the summer on a season-long loan from Premier League Everton, with the attacking midfielder finding himself mostly out of the starting line-up over the last few months, making just two starts since August in the league.

Derby have been needing some creativity from midfield, especially away from home, but Dowell has not really shown signs of being able to provide that during his appearances for the club so far – and with Wayne Rooney arriving in January he could fall even further down the pecking order, meaning a recall from his loan could be a possibility.

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Jamie Paterson

Paterson is very much in a similar position to Dowell, having found it difficult to really establish himself as a key player in Cocu’s side since arriving on a season-long loan from Bristol City, with the attacker finding himself behind the likes of Tom Lawrence, Mason Bennett, Duane Holmes and even Morgan Whittacker of late.

Cocu’s recent decision to switch to three at the back with wing-backs will make it even more of a challenge for him to force his way back into the side, with Paterson not really suited to playing as a wing-back, which could make Bristol City consider a potential January recall.

Kelle Roos

Roos started the season as the Rams’ number one goalkeeper having earned the backing of Cocu during the summer, and the 27-year-old has demonstrated his shot stopping ability having pulled off some impressive saves during the opening months of the season.

However, Roos has come under pressure due to his inability to command his penalty area and deal with set pieces and crosses from opponents, which has seen him be responsible for a few errors leading to goals away from home.

That has seen the keeper be dropped in favour of Ben Hamer in the last two matches, which leaves his potential long-term future with the club in doubt, although unless the Rams bring in a quality replacement in January, it is likely he will remain at the club until the summer as the club’s back up keeper.

Andre Wisdom

Wisdom has found himself largely out of the Rams’ starting line-up during the first few months of the campaign, with the likes of Jayden Boggle, Scott Malone and Max Lowe all preferred to him in the full-back positions at times throughout the beginning of the campaign.

However, Wisdom has found himself back in the side in the last few weeks, with Cocu switching to a back three, and in the absence if Matt Clarke, the defender has come into the heart of defence, but the Rams are likely to bring in some extra cover at centre back in January, which could see him lose his place in the team again.