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

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

After Saturday’s 3-0 defeat at West Ham, John Eustace called for his side to have more belief. What better way to cultivate that than with a rallying cry as in Monday’s pre-match press conference? In the opening month of the season, the Rams boss has spoken regularly about the need to build confidence and chemistry in his ranks. After a tough afternoon in front of more than 60,000 fans in London, a week with back-to-back home games against West Brom and Birmingham City repr

Leading The Rams on their first trip to the London Stadium, it looked as though John Eustace had one plan in mind: keep it tight. Facing West Ham was always going to be a tough task. Nuno Espirito Santo’s side possess two starting centre backs bought for a total of £60m, and the Championship’s most expensive import after they signed Celtic’s Belgian midfielder Arne Engels for £25m. Then there's Jarrod Bowen, who really should be playing European football this season. But un

How’s that for a response? After the depths of Saturday’s dismal defeat to Swansea and fears of regression if new faces did not arrive Tuesday brought a glorious fightback. John Eustace’s “true warriors” secured a 2-0 win over Portsmouth. Nobody at Fratton Park embodied that spirit more than Lars-Jørgen Salvesen. He scored within three minutes of coming off the bench, just hours after rejecting a loan move and opting to fight for his place. Eustace told BBC Radio Derby:

Derby County got their first point of the season yesterday, with goals from Carlton Morris and Bobby Clark helping them to a 2-2 draw with Cardiff City. While The Rams now have something to build on, much improvement is still needed. In that spirit, here are five things we learned from the match.

For 15 excellent minutes, Derby were in complete control. Joe Ward was delivering dangerous crosses aplenty in acres down the right as Charlton struggled to keep the ball for more than a few seconds. Even when the next action was fluffed or deliveries were cleared, Derby simply recycled, dominating duels on the edge of the box. In that time, a lovely bit of link-up between The Rams’ front two as Sam Szmodics found Carlton Morris, who took a delightfully deft touch to return

John Eustace told Rams TV on Saturday that bringing Sam Szmodics back to Derby County was “not rocket science.” His goal though, was a spectacular lift-off to his second spell at Pride Park. After a dismally dreary first 45 in front of a crowd of just over 11,000, it could have been the launchpad from which The Rams fought back. From which they showed Lincoln City that it would take a whole lot more to compete in their first season back in the second tier’s stratospheric he

That’s a wrap on the 2026 Derby County reunion tour. But whether in the presence of Jake Buxton, Nigel Clough, or as at the AESSEAL New York Stadium, Rotherham United technical director Steve McClaren, The Rams’ performances haven’t exactly been vintage. Though, in fairness, that is not the point of pre-season friendlies. They are simply the warmup gigs. The opportunity to tweak the set list, fine tune the staging or test out new equipment. Finding the optimum set-up takes

Many boxing fans have long praised prospective Derby investor Turki Alalshikh for making huge fights happen. While many of the Pride Park faithful are hoping for a similarly big impact, head coach John Eustace seems more cautious. In his first media interview of the season, Eustace spoke to BBC Radio Derby after Saturday’s 1-0 Bass Charity Vase defeat to Burton Albion. He said: “Obviously I’ve spoken to the club and they’ve mentioned that there is a takeover, but I think

If you could bottle the feeling inside Pride Park during the opening ten minutes on Saturday for The Rams to sell, they would not be worried about the financial incentives of promotion. In stupendous sunshine, the Derby faithful rocked as John Eustace’s side flew out of the blocks against Sheffield United knowing a win and a bit of luck would be needed for a top six finish. Within sixteen seconds, Joe Ward shot low, his effort on the turn gathered by Adam Davies in net. M

Nobody enjoyed watching that. Portsmouth fans tearing their hair out. Derby fans biting their nails from behind the sofa, or a padded seat in the directors’ box as it was for the suspended John Eustace. Perhaps it was predictable that a game some fans billed as a battle of Rams skippers past and present would be ugly and marred by bookings. Neither Ebou Adams nor Lewis Travis are known for their playmaking prowess. Adams' second-minute shove on his armband-sporting successor

It may have been Craig Forsyth’s 37 th birthday, but it wasn’t just Mr. Derby County who received gifts on Tuesday. The Scottish stalwart marked his big day in style when he finished from six-yards-out to cancel out the Amir Hadžiahmetović corner which Callum Elder turned into his own net. And while referee Adam Herczeg neglected to give Forsyth a birthday card, he was the beneficiary of some lacklustre officiating – his strike should really have been flagged as offside.

Derby County Head Coach John Eustace marked a year at the helm with a Valentine's Day victory over Swansea City which had all the hallmarks of the side he has developed. With defensive resilience, swift transitions, and deadly dead balls, this was a fitting way to mark a year which has seen him transform The Rams' fortunes.