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.

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."