Derby County have confirmed a trio of new additions to their Under-21s squad with 19-year-olds Charlie Lindsay, Lewis Ridd and Tony Weston putting pen to paper with the club.
Now led by Jake Buxton, the Rams’ are attempting to revamp their Under-21s following a majorly disappointing season last time out in which the side finishing their campaign with just one point on the board.
Prior to the aforementioned trio arriving, Derby had added former Crystal Palace defender Ryan Bartley and ex-Burton Albion midfielder Ben Radcliffe to their ranks. The latter has featured and scored for the Rams’ first team in pre-season.
Four Under-18s have also made the step up. Riley Moloney, Callum Moore, Adebayo Fapetu and Carlos Richards namely.
Lindsay and Weston both join Buxton’s squad having impressed on trial following their Rangers exits, reports had previously suggested that the pair were training with Derby so this comes as no surprise.
Ridd’s arrival, however, went under the radar. The goalkeeper departed Ipswich Town this summer before his Moor Farm switch.
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Lindsay featured for Rangers’ B Team in the Lowland League last season. The forward is a Northern Ireland youth international and was previously on the books at Glentoran before his Ibrox switch in 2020.
Weston signed for Rangers from Blackpool in 2020. He made his senior bow for the Gers in 2022 and spent time on loan at Partick Thistle and Cove Rangers before his release.
Welshman Ridd has been brought in to compete for a place between the sticks. He has a handful of non-league experience due to loan spells with Sudbury, Bury Town and Brightlingsea.
Huge boost for Derby
It was crucial for Derby to bolster their youth side following the poor performance throughout last season. They have retained their Category One status, which is a massive boost, but they now need to kick on and make sure a repeat of the previous campaign does not happen again.
The squad is seemingly a lot healthier right now than it had been before due to the knock-on affects of administration, so now is the time to kick on and improve.
They are in safe hands with Bucko.