Derby County urged not to “fall back into the trap” in search of Premier League promotion

This article is part of Football League World’s ‘Terrace Talk’ series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Derby County have been on something of a rollercoaster in recent years – from being on the brink of administration to a sustainable return back to the Championship.

 

The Rams certainly cannot be accused of having had a dull time of it of late. The club were on the edge of ceasing to exist until chairman David Clowes saved them in 2022, spending a reported £55 million.

Derby fans rejoiced and just two seasons later, they find themselves back in the Championship.

Looking further back still, the Rams faithful will remember their most recent Premier League stint for all the wrong reasons following their record-breaking 11 points in the 2007/08 season.

But 15 years later, how far away are Derby from returning to the promised land?

“We don’t want to fall back into the trap” – Derby urged to be patient with Premier League return

FLW’s Derby County fan pundit, Shaun Woodward, has urged the club to be patient when it comes to their Premier League ambitions.

He said: “If I’m being totally honest, it would be a big ask to be in the Premier League in five years. I think David Clowes is a legend at the club for what he’s done for us and saved us from extinction.

“I don’t think he has the clout and the money behind him to really give us that push to the Premier League and even if we did manage to get up, we would struggle unless we have major investment.

“To be honest with you, a couple of years of consolidation and then look to bring in someone else alongside Clowes or Clowes to sell it himself.

“We don’t want to fall back into the trap under Mel Morris, and we need to be patient. If it takes five, six, seven years, so be it.

“Patience is the key, and we have to remember what happened last time when we chased it. If we were to go up this year I wouldn’t complain, but the likelihood is we’d come back down and have players on big contracts who wouldn’t want to be at the club.

“A couple more years of consistency and sustainability, and I’m more than happy.”

Rams must be careful not to go down the same path

Derby’s focus needs to be on the here and now rather than a bold play for the Premier League.

They need to be careful not to fall back into their dark days under Morris, whose unsustainable ownership of the club nearly cost them everything.

There were good times during his tenure and the club went close to Premier League promotion but risks were taken that could’ve been fatal for the Pride Park outfit.

What they need now is sustainability and consistency, to help them slowly build back up before they can realistically dream again of the top flight. Clowes looks like the right owner to instill just that, as the past few years have shown.

Eventually, the focus may shift to the Premier League but right now, staying in the Championship and continuing to build back up needs to be the priority.

 

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