Derby County may end up surviving by the skin of their teeth in the Championship this season, but whatever happens it has been a disappointing season regardless for the Rams.

They were expected to build on last season's finish of 10th in the table, but instead it has been a painful relegation battle for most of the season.

Wayne Rooney showed some early promise after taking over the reins from Phillip Cocu, but he has overall been unable to arrest the slide and should Sheffield Wednesday win on Saturday and Derby lose, then their clash on the final day of the campaign will be very interesting.

Rooney injected his squad with some fresh players in the January transfer window - all loanees - and there's not that many of the current first teamers that are real long-serving players at Pride Park.

Regardless, let's look at the 10 players who have spent the most time at the Rams since joining.

Having linked up with the senior squad following the end of his time in the under-18's, Buchanan was given a debut for the first team on September 12, 2019 in an EFL Cup match.

It wouldn't be until this season though that Buchanan would get a regular run in the side, playing 34 times in the current campaign as he's solidified himself as the first-choice left-back.

Despite the results being poor, Buchanan has still impressed and it's led to Premier League interest in him, with West Ham United watching the 20-year-old with interest and it will be interesting to see where he ends up or if he stays.

Coming into the senior ranks at the exact same time as Buchanan was Knight, and the pair have certainly made themselves household figures at Pride Park since.

Knight made his first-team debut a month before Buchanan did and his actually came in the league, with Phillip Cocu bringing him into the fold immediately and he was one of Derby's shining lights last season with six goals from midfield.

His stock has only grown with a Republic of Ireland debut last year and he captained the club for the first time back in January at the age of 19 - he could certainly become a Rams icon if he sticks around long-term.

Shinnie didn't officially join Derby until July 1, 2019 but his transfer was confirmed months prior from Aberdeen as County were able to approach him on a pre-contract arrangement.

The Scot joined a well-stocked engine room at the Rams nearly two years ago now although he would miss months of his debut campaign with the club due to injury and he was limited to just 23 Championship appearances.

Shinnie has been much more of a regular this season though, playing in every single league match since mid-December in what has been not so good of a season for the club.

Waghorn has played for many EFL clubs and after a good season with Ipswich, the striker made the move to Pride Park in August 2018 but he may not make it to three years with the club.

The 31-year-old had a good season in 2019-20 with 12 goals, but it's safe to say that the current campaign has been one massive disappointment.

Just three goals have been notched this campaign and with his contract expiring this summer, Waghorn might end up being released - especially if the Rams do get relegated - and he's definitely not performed well enough to earn a new deal.

Bird has been involved with the first team at Derby from a very young age, having made his debut in September 2017 as a 16-year-old.

He was protected though for another season from league action and made his Championship debut in the 2018/19 campaign, but it was last season where he made his real breakthrough with 22 league outings.

Now aged 20, Bird marshals Derby's midfield and has played 32 times in the current campaign, and judging by the contract he signed earlier this season until 2024, he could end up being top of the long-serving list of players in a few years time.

Lawrence has definitely done a lot of good for Derby since arriving in August 2017 from Manchester United, but there's also been the bad as well.

On his day, the Wales international is dazzling and his long range strikes have won Derby many points, but he's really struggled this season, especially with injuries.

Even when he's been in the team though, Lawrence has failed to fire and it's only in recent weeks where he's been able to get a couple of goals under his belt, but at this stage he's classed as one of the senior, long-serving members of the squad.

Quite a few of Derby's current crop of defenders have been around at Pride Park for a while, and that includes Widsom who joined in July 2017 from Liverpool.

He's not always been a regular fixture in the squad under different managers but the current campaign has been more like it for the 27-year-old, who has made 38 appearances and seems to be a favourite of Wayne Rooney.

Wisdom has had to wait a while for a real chance in the side and even though this season hasn't exactly been a good one for Derby, Wisdom himself has made good progress and he will be looking to take it into next season.

Davies' season was ended abruptly in December after rupturing his achilles, but he will be hoping to make it a fifth campaign with the Rams next season if he fully recovers.

The 36-year-old joined in June 2017 and he's been a model of consistency for Derby when he's played, although an achilles injury he picked up back in 2018 means that he's been restricted to just 95 league games in nearly four years of being contracted to the club.

He's still one of the long-serving players though for the Rams regardless of his game-time and struggles, and he will be hoping that he's not kicked his last ball for the club.

Roos was a real unknown when he arrived from non-league Nuneaton in January 2014, and he was expected to be back-up for Lee Grant initially with the hope that he would develop into a starter.

After several loan spells away from Pride Park, Roos finally got his league debut in January 2019 - five years after he joined - due to a Scott Carson injury, and he remained in-between the sticks when the more experienced Carson was fit again.

He hasn't been able to fully nail a place down though, making 22 appearances last season and just 12 in the current campaign as David Marshall has been the more used stopper, and Roos may have played his last game for the Rams if his contract isn't extended beyond the summer.

The longest-serving Derby player has been at the club for over eight years now in Forsyth.

The Scot initially signed on loan in March 2013 from Watford but that move was converted into a permanent one a few months later in July, but he's not always been a regular fixture.

His first two full seasons at Pride Park were productive but he has been hampered with knee injuries for quite a bit of his spell with the club - at the age of 32 though he's still a useful asset as he can play at his natural position of left-back but also at centre-back, and that usefulness may mean he sticks around for a bit longer.