It’s matchday at Pride Park again, where to the shock of some, John Eustace remains in the dugout. But the Rams head coach is “not surprised” despite going through a “really testing period”. Questions about his future continue to swirl and will surely only intensify if Bolton leave Derby victorious. But the 47-year-old has not had any conversations with anyone at the club about his position. Furthermore, Eustace has had no indication that the game is ‘must-win’. “Well, I

Sounding downtrodden and subdued following a 4-0 home defeat to Norwich, John Eustace could offer little assurance that he will still be in the dugout come Friday night. While he is “not a quitter”, the head coach conceded that, “We'll have to wait and see. The club's much bigger than me.” It was an utterly miserable birthday for the former Rams midfielder, whose side suffered their heaviest defeat since his first game in charge. With further injury blows to Ryan Hedges (ha

This could be a hugely consequential week for John Eustace and Derby County. Already four points from safety after 13 games, two home fixtures present a big opportunity to get their season back on track. They certainly cannot afford another hammering. Speaking to the press on Monday, Eustace said: “I think it's a big week for the football club. We're obviously all in it together and tomorrow night's the most important game. We're not worried about the one after that, tomorr

Deflated, dejected and drained, Derby left The Den defeated again. Derby fans left The Den asking, “Where were the spirit and the defensive discipline that we saw at Sheffield United?” Fundamentals basics of defending were absent from the off.

Derby may currently be “in a relegation battle” but after the spirited draw at Bramall Lane, John Eustace is upbeat. “I don't think the confidence has ever gone,” he told the media on Thursday, citing “lots of circumstances why we've let leads slip or conceded in difficult moments.” It seems fair to file Dion Sanderson’s sending off last weekend among those. Next to it, is a rather large file marked injuries. But the likes Jacob Widell Zetterström, Alex Mowatt and Max Joh

Photo: Joe Egerton Bravo to the travelling Rams fans who braved the yellow-warning-worthy weather to travel to Bramall Lane. If only Dion Sanderson had heeded his. A goal to the good thanks to Bobby Clark, Derby were relatively in control when the centre back went in on substitute Femi Seriki as he led a Sheffield United counter down their left. Some will argue it was soft, but with Ryan Hedges and Sam Szmodics covering, the challenge was needless. And it left referee Ste

When a manager walks into a post-match press conference after a hard-fought 1-0 away win, the first thing they are meant to do is sing the praises of their side. Not Mark Robins. Instead, he leapt to the defence of John Eustace, whose side are still without a home victory this season. “He’s got a lot of injuries, John. Loads and loads of injuries, mostly in the backline, but a key injury to [forward] Patrick Agyemang. He’s a really good player. “So, he’s got a lot of in

Is this must win? April’s 2-0 home win over Stoke is a distant memory: Derby have won just once at Pride Park since. “We realise we haven't won enough home games up to now,” Eustace said in Thursday’s pre-match press conference. “But again, it's a new challenge now on Saturday and it's important that we just go and be as positive as we can and be as competitive as we can and see where it takes us.” It is well documented that the Rams’ squad is depleted, with Sondre Lang

The 4-0 defeat to Queens Park Rangers that was John Eustace’s first game in charge of Derby laid bare the difficulty of the job he had taken on. Now keeping it seems a bigger task than ever. Looking to build on the positives of Saturday’s 1-1 draw at home to Wrexham, the Rams boss named an unchanged XI at Loftus Road. Also unchanged, were Derby’s fortunes from that night exactly 20 months ago. This was a horrendous of full circle moment. Yes, I’d written that before Lars-

The confirmation of the inevitable administration season relegation. The Valentine’s Day thrashing which was the John Eustace era’s nightmare start. And, ugh, Bobby Zamora. Queens Park Rangers have not been the kindest of opponents for Derby in recent years. While demons were banished when Jaydon Banel kept the Rams’ play-off hopes alive with a stunning 88th minute winner back in April, Eustace’s mind is focused firmly on the job at hand. He said: “we’re in a different posi

Joe Egerton - Football Journalist and owner of @DerbyCountyUpdates2 Rams boss John Eustace says he is pleased with the development of midfielder David Ozoh ahead of Wednesday night's trip to QPR The deadline day returnee has had struggles with injuries across his three spells at Pride Park, with Derby often having to manage his minutes. But after the midfielder completed his first ninety minutes of the season in Saturday's defeat to Wrexham, and Eustace discussed where the mi

Mo Fuseini sprints through the middle of the pitch following a Wrexham corner and finds Sam Szmodics. He might not have the same pace, but he oozes confidence as he connects with the pass across the inside-left, takes it around Zak Vyner to open up space and curls it into the top-left corner from 20 yards. Three weeks on the training ground brought a refreshed, better-drilled Rams side back to Pride Park. It is just a shame that Wrexham’s birthday boy Ollie Rathbone was int

After an extended international break, Mo Fuseini’s late equaliser at Burnley could easily feel like a lifetime ago for John Eustace. But instead, the exploits of the Union Saint Gilloise loanee, who has been away with Ghana, are still on his mind. Or rather, the reaction to it. During Thursday’s 25-minute pre-match press conference at Moor Farm, Eustace heaped praise on the Rams fans and suggested he could follow their requests to see the number 16 start against Wrexham.

Tom Coopey - football journalist John Eustace felt preparation was effective in the three-week international break and are now refreshed ahead of Wrexham on Saturday afternoon. Injuries have been a major talking point this season for Derby, contributing to a slow start, so a newly introduced longer break came at the perfect time. He said: “It's been great, it's given us an opportunity to work with the group that's available to work with and the boys have been fantastic. “T

With a cartwheel, back flip and a flex of his muscles, Mo Fuseini sprinted away in celebration. When he received Rhian Brewster’s pass from just behind the halfway line and raced through down the inside-right, the Ghanaian attacker had the weight of his team on his shoulders After 92 minutes of pedestrian, lacklustre football between two of the Championship’s bottom three, a chance to rescue a deserved point at Turf Moor. The lightning fast forward delivered a finish to mat

'When it rains, it pours’ is no longer an adequate way to describe Derby County’s injury crisis: the Moor Farm treatment room is now flooded. Carlton Morris is back, and Rhian Brewster has sat out for the period mandated under the concussion protocol. But the Rams’ injury list is still extensive (now nine players long), with number one Jacob Widell Zetterström the latest addition with an “impact” injury to his knee. “Obviously he’s not in a good way,” John Eustace told Th

John Eustace spoke to the media ahead of Saturday's trip to Burnley - photo: Tom Coopey Joe Egerton - Football Journalist and owner of @DerbyCountyUpdates2 John Eustace has hailed the strength in depth of Paul Clements' goalkeeping department following the injury to number one Jacob Widell Zetterstrom. Derby County travel to Turf Moor to face Burnley this weekend in the final game before the three-week international break in desperate need of a win after a slow start to the s

Three consecutive defeats for the first time since John Eustace’s first three games in charge; this is the lowest ebb of the head coach’s Rams tenure. His side end a bruising week with two losses. To ten-man West Brom, who had not won at Pride Park in 23 years, and Birmingham City, in what was just the second loss in seven games where Eustace has faced a club he previously managed. That is not to say that the 46-year-old’s job prospects are terminal – he has brought Derby

As Birmingham come to town, the themes are familiar: patience, time and the need to build consistency and chemistry. It is, John Eustace says, “very similar” to last season’s start. Instability is the enemy for any manager, and Eustace is no different. It is difficult to manage a side who have lost thirty goals from last season in the shape of the injured Carlton Morris and Patrick Agyemang, as well as former loanee Ben Brereton Díaz. But he concedes that “people aren’t in

Given his surname, maybe it should not be surprising that the way James Morrison’s Baggies side shut up shop on Wednesday night was supremely impressive. There was wave after wave of Derby pressure, with no real threat to Max O’Leary’s goal. West Brom remained steadfastly alert off the ball despite being a player down for over an hour. Unfortunately for John Eustace, possession does not win you points; 78 per cent in the second half would have easily secured all three if it