Derby County are set for an interesting summer ahead, with Wayne Rooney looking likely to add to his squad in preparation for the 2021/22 season. 

The Rams narrowly avoided relegation into League One on the final day of the season, as they drew 3-3 with Sheffield Wednesday at Pride Park, which proved to be enough to see them finish 21st in the second-tier standings.

But that isn't the end of the uncertainty surrounding the club, with the Daily Mail recently reporting that the club could still be relegated, after the EFL won their appeal against the Rams for breaching Financial Fair Play regulations.

That isn't likely to have an impact on rumoured incomings at this stage though, with Football Insider recently claiming that Derby were interested in a deal to sign Brighton and Hove Albion defender Shane Duffy.

That report was first released before their final match of the 2020/21 season, and claimed that the Rams would pursue a deal to sign the Irish defender if they were to avoid relegation into the third-tier this term.

 

 

They've achieved survival (as it stands), and they'll be hoping they can turn their attentions to adding to their squad ahead of the new league campaign.

Derby have a relatively young first-team squad, and some added experience into their defensive would certainly be welcome for Wayne Rooney's side.

But they face competition from one of their rivals to strike a deal to land his signature though, with it previously being reported by The Scottish Sun that Nottingham Forest were believed to be interested in signing Duffy.

Duffy is contracted with Brighton and Hove Albion until the summer of 2023, but it is claimed by Football Insider that the defender isn't part of Graham Potter's long-term plans with the Premier League club heading into the summer transfer window.

Therefore, it wouldn't come as a surprise to see Duffy depart the AMEX Stadium on a permanent basis in the near future, having recently been out on loan with Scottish giants Celtic this season, where he made 25 appearances in all competitions, as the Bhoys missed out on the Scottish Premiership title by a sizeable margin to rivals Rangers.