Pundit Simon Jordan has backed Derby County's administrators' decision to appeal the club's automatic 12-point deduction for their entrance into administration, speaking on talkSPORT.

The 12-point deduction, which is a standard penalty for those in the second, third or fourth tier of English football if they go into administration, was applied last month and effectively cancelled out the Rams' promising start to the campaign.

Having won 14 points this season, which would have left them in 14th place going into the international break in normal circumstances, they now sit bottom of the Championship and seven points adrift of safety with a considerable lack of depth in their squad.

A further docking of nine points for breaching financial rules could be coming down the tracks in the near future which would kill any chances of the Rams staying afloat in the second tier this term, but their administrators have taken the step of appealing the EFL's first points punishment.

Derby believe they can win this appeal because of their claims that Covid-19 was largely responsible for the situation they currently find themselves in, but this case will now need to go to an independent arbitration panel before a verdict is delivered with the deduction still applied to their points tally at this stage.

Simon Jordan believes the club have made the right decision in appealing the punishment, saying on talkSPORT: "I think they’re going to try and use Covid as to why there should be exceptions deployed to the standard mandated 12-point deduction.

"If you go into administration, you get 12 points (deducted), it’s not something you can horse trade with.

"But if you believe you’ve got enough merit in the argument of Covid being that exceptional circumstance.

"What’s the worst-case scenario? You ask for something, you don’t get it, you didn’t have it in the first place.

"If I’m a Derby administrator, I’m not suggesting they should be upping the hopes of the Derby fans because they’ve got another nine points coming down the line for financial breaches."

The Verdict:

You have to agree with Simon Jordan here.

Even though their case may have taken time to form, what do they have to lose at this stage with a 12-point deduction already imposed?

A further docking of nine points would relegate them almost automatically, so if they can escape this punishment but receive the nine-point punishment instead, it gives them a slightly better chance of remaining in the division compared to where they are currently at now.

It's a major shame they received this punishment in the first place though, because Wayne Rooney's side had started the campaign well and had established themselves as a solid second-tier side despite the difficulties they faced during the summer.

But all they can do now is focus on what's happening on the pitch, because there's a lot more uncertainty to come off it over the next few months.