The EFL are not yet in a position to lodge an appeal against the £100,000 fine handed to Derby County as written reasons are yet to be published in the case involving the Rams, according to Simon Stone from BBC Sport

Last week, it was announced that an independent disciplinary commission had decided to fine the East Midlands club £100,000 as a sanction in a case concerning financial fair play rules.

Both the EFL and Derby will have a chance to appeal the decision, with the former indicating in a recent statement that the Championship club could be retrospectively relegated to League One ahead of the 2021/22 campaign.

With the start of the season now less than six weeks away, Stone has provided a fresh update on the situation – revealing that the EFL remain unable to lodge an appeal as written reasons are yet to be published in the case.

Once those have been published both Derby and the EFL will have 14 days to lodge an appeal.

The EFL has developed interchangeable fixture lists for the Rams and Wycombe Wanderers, who would rejoin the Championship were the East Midlands club to be relegated.

The Verdict

This looks like good news for Derby's hopes of remaining in the second tier for the 2021/22 campaign.

Time looks to be on the Rams' side at the moment as the EFL would surely have to lodge and win an appeal before the start of the upcoming season for the punishment to lead to retrospective relegation.

Wayne Rooney's side could instead be forced to start the season with a points deduction, though they would at least be competing in the Championship.

It seems the East Midlands club will have to wait a little while longer to learn their fate but that could be no bad thing.