After a difficult start to the season for Derby County, they finally collected their first three points of the season in an impressive 2-1 away win at Preston.
The Rams fans were slightly concerned with the way they started the season off, but after completing deadline-day deals for Jacob Butterfield and Bradley Johnson, things are looking slightly better and the three points at the weekend will have certainly given them some much-needed encouragement for the team that currently sit in 14th position.
Derby bolstered their squad heavily in the summer market, investing in Chris Baird, Andreas Weimann, Jacob Butterfield, Scott Carson, Tom Ince, Bradley Johnson and Jason Shackell.
This will faintly help Derby fans cover their nightmares of last campaign as they were almost certain to gain automatic promotion to the Premier League, however with only a few games to go, they somehow let that opportunity slip out of their grasp which led to them getting demolished 3-0 at home to Reading on the final day, leaving them to agonisingly miss out on a play-off place.
After spending £20m in the summer, Derby must fancy their chances of (again) trying to secure automatic promotion. Here are my three picks who I believe will prove to be important in Derby’s promotion-push.
1) Jason Shackell
After re-signing from Burnley, Jason Shackell will be key this year for The Rams and had previously played an essential part in Burnley’s promotion two season ago.
It took a large fee to scoop Shackell back to Pride Park, but his leadership skills at the back should turn out to be a breath-of-fresh air to Derby fans following their self-destruction at the end of last season, conceding 23 goals in 13 games.
Shackell can provide a good presence in the opposition’s penalty area from set-pieces, shown by his goal against Portsmouth in the League Cup this campaign.
2) Tom Ince
Last campaign, Ince bagged 13 goals and 3 assists in his spell at Derby, so he certainly puts himself in-and-around the opposition’s area which is great for Derby because with his undoubted quality, he can score goals and provide for his team-mates.
Making his loan-spell permanent, Tom Ince is the type of creative spark every club needs in the Championship. The Englishman has bags of potential and certainly is a great catalyst for The Rams at this level.
If Ince can make a similar impact at Derby like he did last year whilst on-loan, £4.6m could provide to be an astute signing for the Rams.
3) Bradley Johnson
Norwich fans were left bitterly disappointed when Derby announced the signing of Bradley Johnson, and it’s obvious to see why. Johnson bagged an astounding 15 goals last year in the Championship and collected 2 assists from the central-midfield role.
He played a vital role in the Canaries’ promotion last year and it is very surprising to see him drop a league. Nevertheless, this should develop into a shrewd piece of business by Clement.
The Englishman can provide a great attacking-threat when going forward and is strong on the ball, and Derby fans will be hoping that Johnson should reproduce his form once again in the Championship this year and if he does, paying over £5m for the former Canary will turn out to be a bargain.
Derby County fans, do you agree? Who will be your three key players? Will you secure promotion automatically? Let us know your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below!