This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict’ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more

Derby County starlet Jason Knight is attracting Premier League transfer interest from Burnley and Newcastle United, according to the Irish Examiner.

The 20-year-old played 43 Championship games last season for the Rams as they struggled to survive in the second tier, but Knight was a stand-out as he stepped up to the plate and even captained the club on occasion.

Despite being one of few players contracted to the club for the upcoming season and beyond, Knight will miss the first few months after manager Wayne Rooney injured him in a training session.

It hasn't stopped there being transfer interest in him though, but will Derby be tempted to sell? The FLW team have had their say.

George Dagless

I'm sure they will be tempted, even if they can't really afford to do so given the limited nature of their squad.

The Rams have not had a good summer for obvious reasons and it's currently hard to make a case for them doing anything other than spending the season fighting relegation in all truth.

They have some decent players but the squad depth is not there, and perhaps they'll feel selling Knight is part of the way they'll be able to change that with the money they can get.

They need to ensure they actually have some signings lined up to replace him if they do sell up, though, and it's another fine balancing act that the Rams find themselves involved in.

 

 

 

 

Alfie Burns

It’s a worrying situation that Derby find themselves in right now in terms of their squad and they can’t really afford to lose many more players given how difficult it is proving to be to sign replacements.

However, if the money is right, I’d expect to see Knight moving on.

He’s a decent little player and Derby are going to miss him sorely in the opening months of the season due to his injury.

Burnley and Newcastle can both offer him a lot more security that Derby, with both still managing to offer a route into the first-team if Knight proves himself.

From the player’s point of view, it would be a decent move and, as stated, if the money is right, surely Derby would be willing to cash in.

Sam Rourke

It's a tough one from a Derby perspective.

Jason Knight has emerged as one of the Rams' more key players in recent times and they simply can't afford to lose too many players between now and the transfer deadline, given the threadbare nature of their playing squad.

For Knight, the prospect of a Premier League switch to a club like Newcastle must be enticing and if Derby did receive an adequate offer you could see them moving him on to help balance the books financially.

However, I do think it would need to be a relatively sizeable bid for Derby to consider letting one of their first-teamers depart so close to the start of the new season.