Derby County urged to drop Ipswich target and shore up defence

Derby County have begun the Championship campaign sluggishly, prompting calls to abandon the pursuit of Ipswich Town forward Anis Mehmeti and instead prioritise a defensive signing in the January window. With only one win from their opening eight fixtures and a leaky back line, the Rams risk slipping into a relegation battle.

Having missed out on the top six and the play‑off places on the final day of last season, Derby now sit in the bottom three with just one victory in eight games. No other side in the second tier has scored fewer goals, while only four clubs – including Preston North End and Burnley below them – have conceded more.

Defensive frailties mount

The Rams have kept a solitary clean sheet and have allowed more than one goal in six of their nine matches across all competitions. They have shipped 14 goals in eight games, an average of 1.75 per match, compared with 1.28 per game last season.

Injuries have left Derby short‑handed at left‑back, with Craig Forsyth, Charlie Taylor and Derry Murkin all unavailable, and centre‑backs Eiran Cashin and Matt Clarke also sidelined.

Shaun Woodward urges defensive focus

FLW’s Derby fan pundit Shaun Woodward said: “I think I would have liked to have seen Anis Mehmeti come into Derby. He is a very talented player at this level and has shown it at Bristol City what a great player he could be with his goals and assists. I just think that right now he isn’t the type of player that we need. We are so short defensively with (Eiran) Cashin and (Matt) Clarke now out injured. We have got no left‑backs at the club for the foreseeable future with Fozzy (Craig Forsyth), (Charlie) Taylor and (Derry) Murkin all out. For me, defensively we need to be strengthening and that is a key area we need to be looking at. As much as I wouldn’t have minded Mehmeti coming into Derby, I think that right now under the circumstances, we need to strengthen the defence because until that we are going to keep shipping goals so that, to me, is the priority in January.”

John Eustace has felt growing pressure despite a strong record at Birmingham City and Blackburn Rovers, where he left both clubs in the top six and play‑off places. His conservative style, once praised, now appears less effective as individual errors and disorganisation have crept into Derby’s defensive play.

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With the January window looming, Derby’s priority appears clear: secure a left‑back or centre‑back to halt the flow of goals, leaving the Ipswich Town ace as a secondary consideration.