Derby County have lifted themselves back into the Play-Off race after an awful start to the season.

The Rams sit just outside the play-off places and face stiff competition to get into and stay in the top six, with a whole host of clubs looking strong during 2016/17.

Unlike other clubs, they remained fairly quiet throughout the January transfer window, though did make some signings as Steve McClaren brought in 3 new faces and tied down other players to new contracts.

Some fans will surely feel we didn't improve our squad or make signings that match the quality of the transfer business that teams around them made, though I feel that our business in January was sensible and we only improved were it was really necessary.

Julien De Sart was the first arrival at Pride Park and has made a good impression since joining on loan from Middlesbrough. He was impeccable on his debut at West Brom in the FA Cup, and despite a poor performance away at Leeds, he's followed that up by playing well against promotion rivals Reading and Newcastle. So, with that in mind, the Belgian is looking like a good addition to the squad and is more than capable of doing a job should Bradley Johnson be unavailable.

Furthermore, his Middlesbrough teammate David Nugent has also joined the ranks in Derbyshire. The 31-year-old signed for a transfer fee of around £2.5m, which isn't a lot in today's game for an experienced goal scorer. Also, considering the fact Lee Grant departed for Stoke for just over £1m before Nugent arrived, means that essentially we paid just over a million for a proven Championship goal scorer.

Not bad business.

Given the service, David Nugent will score goals, and can step in for Darren Bent should he get injured or suspended, making him a good addition to Steve McClaren's team and for a small price.

The only other new signing in January at Derby was youngster Kyle McAllister, who is likely to feature for the Under 21s squad rather than the first-team. Still, McAllister is a highly rated player nonetheless and has the potential to go on and become something great.

Arguably Derby's best business of the transfer window was tying midfield magician Will Hughes down to a new contract. Hughes is influential in the middle for Derby, his creativity, his passing, his vision and all-round game easily makes him one of the best centre midfielders in the Championship.

Hughes had been linked with moves to the Premier League but to the relief of all Rams supporters, he's committed his future to the club, which is absolutely fantastic.

Also in January, Chris Martin signed a new contract despite being on loan with Fulham. A lot of Rams fans are happy with that news, however, I personally don't think bringing him back is a good idea.

Overall I'm inclined to think Derby's January transfer business was largely as good as it could have been. We strengthened were we needed to and didn't spend large or stupid amounts of money as we have done in the past.

De Sart is good cover in midfield, Nugent is an experienced goal scorer, McAllister is a promising youngster and Hughes is a key player tied down to a new deal. This, along with the return of players from injury, such as Ikechi Anya, Cyrus Christie and Nick Blackman puts our squad in a healthy situation going into the final stages of the season.

Derby fans... What are your thoughts on our January transfer business? Let us know your thoughts and opinions in the comments below!