Derby County have secured Championship safety and the £500,000 bill for manager John Eustace has proved the shrewdest signing in their recent history.
Eustace was not included in the Championship Manager of the Year nominations, but his work at Pride Park over the last three months cannot possibly be overestimated.
Inheriting a team bottom of the table and seven points adrift, the former Derby player has masterminded an heroic act of escapology.
The goalless draw at home to Stoke City on Saturday was enough to send Luton down as Eustace’s men finished one point and three places above the drop zone.
THE RAMS ARE STAYING UP. 🖤
— Derby County (@dcfcofficial) May 3, 2025
Now the club is looking ahead with great optimism, with the opportunity to rebuild the squad this summer.
Many questioned the wisdom of Eustace quitting Blackburn Rovers in February, when the Lancashire club were in fifth place and Derby were staring down the barrel at League One.
Now, we can see why. Eustace has reinvigorated the club and established a powerful connection with a fanbase desperately waiting for lift-off.
It is unquestionably Eustace’s greatest managerial achievement so far, though the work of his predecessor Paul Warne, who ensured Derby’s defensive record remained solid, cannot be airbrushed from history.
Derby are now preparing for a busy summer, with survival opening up more possibilities in the transfer window.
External investment discussions will also accelerate with owner David Clowes.
Recruitment meetings are well under way. Derby have appointed former Huddersfield Town sporting director Leigh Bromby as an interim recruitment lead, and forwards are understood to be a priority for the summer.
The sporting intelligence unit of Ed Smith and Mo Bobat, previously at the England men’s cricket team, will also be crucial.
Smith and Bobat were heavily involved in the January additions of Norway international Sondre Langas and forward Lars-Jorgen Salvesen from Viking in January.
It can be revealed that defender Kane Wilson has triggered an option to cover next season and is also in negotiations over a new long-term contract.
Derby want to re-sign Everton midfielder Harrison Armstrong on loan for next season. The teenager has proved highly impressive with not only his quality on the pitch but his maturity off it, after joining in January.
Liverpool centre-back Nat Phillips has also excelled and Derby will explore the possibility of re-signing him, too.
Derby have 13 players out of contract in total and discussions will be held early next week over who stays or leaves.
Eustace will be at the forefront of Derby’s planning, and feels that next season presents an opportunity to grow the club.
Derby were always convinced that he would deliver this impact. After Liam Rosenior was dismissed in September 2022, with the club in the third tier, Eustace was under serious consideration then.
Despite his association with the club, where he made 62 appearances in two separate spells, dropping from the Championship into League One was still a tough sell.
Earlier this year, though, the stars aligned. After Warne’s dismissal, and with frustration building behind the scenes at Blackburn, Eustace made his emotional return.
Derby’s chief executive Stephen Pearce worked long days to complete the deal, totalling around £500,000 for Eustace and his backroom staff. It soon became clear that Eustace was a coach of high intensity. Training is minutely organised, with each player required to sign in at an allotted time before carrying out pre-activation.
Individual meetings and unit meetings are frequent, with every player given a clear picture of what is needed to know their job inside out.
Nothing is unprepared or off the cuff. Every detail is broken down into scripted passages of play. All players have been given individual development plans, focusing on preparation and diet away from the club’s Moor Farm base. Eustace has banned the use of mobile phones in the players’ bistro.
Over the last international break, he took the squad away for three days to Mottram Hall to build team spirit. Rounds of golf and team meals at night were regarded as pivotal in enhancing the togetherness that has been a key part of the rescue mission.
“Fighters not victims” has proved Eustace’s mantra, and he has maintained a level of calm through the highs and lows of a tiring season.
Early into his tenure, he recognised that Derby could still improve with goals from set-pieces. Identifying players with good delivery was the focus in his first week. Perhaps it is no surprise that his old Stoke manager, Tony Pulis, is a huge influence on his training methods and they speak regularly.
Set-pieces were a strength under Warne, and Eustace has continued that with nine goals from dead-ball situations.
He has also utilised the long throw – another Pulis speciality – with three goals, including two in the crucial 3-2 victory at Plymouth Argyle in March.
With Eustace’s appointment coming late in the season, he needed to adapt and had no option to play in his preferred 4-3-3 formation. Though he relies on the information of analysts and data, Eustace is old school and makes personal trips to games to watch future opposition.
Saturday’s draw with Stoke has now removed any uncertainty, and Derby can finally plan for Championship football next season. Targets previously regarded as unattainable will now come into sharper focus.
Three years after flirting with disaster, Derby’s rebuilding job will continue under a head coach who has supporters dreaming of a bright future.