Derby County are officially out of administration as Clowes Developments have completed their acquisition of the Rams, it has been confirmed.

County were stricken in administration for nine months after former owner Mel Morris withdrew his funding of the club.

And after a long and protracted saga, lifelong Derby fan David Clowes has come to the rescue to make sure that they will carry on as normal, with work now allowed to get underway ahead of the 2022-23 League One season.

After Bin Zayed International and Erik Alonso both failed in takeover bids for the club in early 2021, the Rams ended that year under the control of Quantuma and with 21 points-worth of deductions from their Championship total.

It appeared that American businessman Chris Kirchner was going to be the saviour after becoming the preferred bidder back in April, and then exchanging contracts with the administrators in May.

However, his apparent funding could not be cleared last month and he subsequently withdrew from the race, allowing Clowes - who already purchased Pride Park stadium from Morris before submitting a bid for the club - to enter the frame.

Following his bid being accepted five days ago for the club, Clowes has been able to tie up the deal in relatively quick fashion, allowing the Rams to now move forward.

The Verdict

After so many breakdowns and false dawns, Derby County finally are free from the shackles of administration.

It has been a long time coming, and it should have realistically been sorted a long time ago, but we are finally at the point where County can now be run like a normal club again.

Despite the circumstances not being ideal in the sense that Derby are now a third tier club, there will now be major optimism that the feel-good factor can push them on in 2022-23.

Worry not anymore, Derby fans - your club is back.