Rams eye double loan swoop before deadline
DERBY County want to add two players to the squad before Thursday's deadline for emergency loan signings.
The Rams say they have a number of targets and will not reveal names but striker DJ Campbell of Leicester City and goalkeeper Frank Fielding of Blackburn Rovers are believed to be high on the list.
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There are currently three players on loan with the Rams following Bryan Hughes' return to Hull City.
The midfielder's one-month stay expired after Friday's defeat at Swansea City.
Manager Nigel Clough is keen to bring in a forward with pace, as he told the Derby Telegraph on Saturday, and Campbell is quick and available.
The 28-year-old, whose full name is Dudley Junior, has struggled to win a place in Leicester's team this season and has made only three appearances as a substitute.
Derby are thought to have asked about Campbell last month when James Vaughan's loan spell from Everton was cut short by a knee injury.
Vaughan is due to return in January once he is fit and the Rams are looking to land another striker in the meantime.
Campbell was a trainee at Aston Villa and had to drop into non-League football with Chesham United, Stevenage Borough, Billericay Town and Yeading before Brentford offered him a chance.
He scored 12 goals in 28 games for Brentford and was snapped up for £500,000 by Birmingham City, where he hit 12 goals in 50 appearances.
Leicester splashed out £1.6m for him in July 2007 and he signed a four-year contract.
Five goals in 47 appearances is not the impact Campbell or Leicester wanted and he was loaned to Blackpool last season, where he scored nine goals in 20 games.
His chances have been limited because Leicester have five other strikers in Matty Fryatt, Martyn Waghorn, Steve Howard, Yann Kermorgant and Paul Gallagher.
In contrast, Rob Hulse and Paul Dickov, also on loan from Leicester, are Derby's only fit strikers right now, although Chris Porter, Steve Davies and Kris Commons should return to action over the next few weeks.
Derby are looking for cover for Stephen Bywater now that second-choice keeper Saul Deeney could be out of action for up to six weeks after suffering a freak injury in the build-up to the Swansea game.
Deeney slipped over and badly twisted his ankle outside the team's hotel on Thursday night after the fire alarm had gone off.
Fielding has been a target of Derby's for some time.
They tried to sign the England Under-21 international in the summer and indicated they would go back in for him when the transfer window opens in January.
Fielding, 21, has had loan spells at Wycombe Wanderers, Northampton Town, Rochdale and Leeds United but has yet to make a senior appearance for Blackburn.
"We have been in touch with a Premier League club about a keeper who is currently not in their squad and we are waiting for them to come back to us," said Clough.
Ross Atkins was on the bench for Derby at Swansea but the 20-year-old keeper has not played for the first team.
On the return of Hughes to Hull, Clough said: "Ideally, we would like to have kept Brian as he had done well for us and has been a good pro around the place.
"However, we need a reserve keeper and a striker with pace in on loan.
"Bearing in mind we are only allowed five loans in the squad at any one time it means we had to thank Bryan and Hull for their assistance but ultimately let him go back."
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by Ashram, Mickleover
Wednesday, November 25 2009, 12:47AM
“People keep saying we're ship building, making steady progress, blah blah blah... WE'RE GOING BACKWARDS! Look at the table. I backed NC at first (and still do deepdown) but this is our 3rd season of dross and peoples patience are waring thin. Sorry Nige, you are a nice bloke but you need some inspiration from somewhere.
George Burley with Clough No. 2 will surely please everybody. C'mon yanks sort it!
We'll be back....”
by mr creosote, borrowash
Tuesday, November 24 2009, 10:34PM
“we are starting to look like fester citys reserve side ..im trying to keep the faith but were becoming butt of the jokes in football ....love clough.. hate s**t football”
by Tom_DCFC7, Derby
Tuesday, November 24 2009, 9:06PM
“Totaly agree with mansfield ram, Clough is not good enough to be derby manager FACT! Forest are signing so much better players than us shorey(loan), gunter, mcgoldrick etc we've signed buxton,dickov(loan),pringle? I've said it before and will say it again then only person to take this club forward is George Burley.”
by mansfield ram, notts
Tuesday, November 24 2009, 8:59PM
“wake up all you clough lovers the bloke aint got a clue gutless away days its pathetic to watch. swans wos the last straw 4 me. bog off back to brewers sooner have roy mac legend back”
by Frank, Swad
Tuesday, November 24 2009, 7:58PM
“Forest have just signed a 28 year old England international defender and were suppossed to be impressed with another Leicester reserve!!! Come on Nigel admit that your wearing a Forest shirt under your Derby tracksuit!”
by cooper91dcfc, ilkeston
Tuesday, November 24 2009, 5:58PM
“cant agree with sean's comment more BACK NIGEL TILL THE END”
by cambsram, The Fens
Tuesday, November 24 2009, 5:52PM
“Sean take it easy! why do we have a opportunity to comment and then all have to agree. We are all trying to state the obvious that we want the Rams to be successful so you give me one good reason after watching that utter dross performance last Friday night 150 miles from home any reason to believe in fantasy! Get real and think not of just anything positive but what do you propose we do about it? Shall I see you at Reading or will you defend to the hilt our failure to field a winning or even competing side. No good writing in capital letters to state your opinion just give an opinion that you think we should agree with! Up the Rams and Up with reality!”
by Chesterfield Ram, Chesterfield
Tuesday, November 24 2009, 4:51PM
“I agree with your sentiments Sean of Derby but with well over a third of the season gone the positives are getting less and less.
Believe me the 1-0 defeat last Friday flattered us. But a win on Saturday would lift everybody.”
by Sean, Derby
Tuesday, November 24 2009, 4:39PM
“...Are we not supposed to be 'Supporters' anymore?
Surely given the ridiculous state of affairs in the team at the moment, with all the injuries, why can we not understand that our recent team line ups aren't exactly ideal, and therefore aren't going to play the best football, hence why they wouldn't be there if any of the injured players weren't out.
During this time, we should be doing everything we can to encourage them, not just slating them at every opportunity. NC in all of his interviews tries to find the positives in the performances, but by reading the posts on here, half of you are giving up already.
Are we not the supporters that cheered for full 90 minutes when our team was being thrashed on a weekly basis in the Premiership anymore?
...Call yourself supporters - Only when we're winning!
COME ON DERBY FANS, WE SHOULD ALL BE BEHIND THE TEAM AGAIN, LIKE WE DID IN THE PREMIERSHIP ACTUALLY TRY TO HELP RAISE CONFIDENCE AND GET THROUGH THIS ADVERSITY INSTEAD OF LOWERING IT!”
by Chesterfield Ram, Chesterfield
Tuesday, November 24 2009, 4:38PM
“As a paying Derby Fan home and away I am getting fed up of some inept performances away from home. the last one in particular. I accept that the injury crisis has not helped but I am far from convinced that any of the loan signings have made a positive contribution.
We cannot keep a clean sheet and therefore continually under pressure to score at least two ourselves which has proved to be beyond us.
We are tactically inept, have no quality and devoid of confidence.
Is DJ the answer-most certainly not.
If we do not get a minimum of 12 points from the games up to the New Year then I believe it will be game over for NC. I hope not and I hope he turns it around. I keep the faith every week by turning up but I want to see us winning again!!!”