Derby County are desperate to try and move on and appoint a fresh owner, with Chris Kirchner looking increasingly likely to be the man to move the Rams forward.

However, the American cannot be unveiled as their new owner until current issues over Pride Park are resolved - and there's some more bad news for the club's supporters, with The Sun journalist Alan Nixon revealing that Mel Morris wants up to £20m in order to hand the ground over.

The Rams have spent the entirety of the 2021/22 campaign struggling both on and off-the-field. Whilst their performances have been bang on, they were deducted points that left them right at the rock bottom of the Championship table. Whilst Wayne Rooney and his squad have picked up plenty of wins and points - and would be much higher up the division if not for the points deduction - it has led to them being relegated to League One.

The club have also been on the brink of going under completely on several occasions - and despite having a full campaign to try and sort out a new owner, the search still rumbles on.

It looks like there might be light at the end of the tunnel for the side though, with Chris Kirchner re-entering the race to try and buy them and finally putting together a bid that appears as though it may go through.

The only stumbling block appears to be the ground, with Alan Nixon reporting that Mel Morris - who currently has the ground - won't accept less than £20m for it. It may price Chris Kirchner out of a move and could even lead to him writing other potential parties out of a move too because of the sheer amount that would have to be pumped in to now get a deal over the line.

For now then, the battle to try and sort out Derby continues - and unless Morris reduces the amount, a deal may not be done just yet.

The Verdict

Derby and their fans will be getting really sick and tired now of these off-field issues. They've come together superbly and have been excellent in terms of their results and performances this year despite what has been rumbling on in terms of their ownership.

It is a real shame then to see all of that hard work potentially unravel. They've been building towards escaping the drop but the deficit was just too much. Rooney would love to be able to go into the summer window with at least the chance to be able to offer fresh terms to some of his out of contract players but even that isn't likely at the moment.

Chris Kirchner looks like he could be the saviour but the amounts on the table might even be too much for him to pay. It sounds like things are just at a standstill right now and that isn't good news for anyone, with the club desperate to move on and to rebuild.

There is still time for a deal to be done though - and the Rams fans will be hoping an agreement can be reached sooner rather than later.