Derby County got their pre-season underway on Friday with a friendly against nearby Matlock Town.
Derby County kick-started their pre-season preparations with a friendly against Matlock Town on Friday, with the Rams winning the game 3-0.
Goals came from new signings Kayden Jackson and Jerry Yates, with Liam Thompson scoring the third midway through the second half.
Paul Warne fielded two different sides in the game and got a look at his new arrivals, with Jackson and Yates obviously featuring, and Kenzo Goudmijn coming on in the second half too.
Ben Osborn didn’t feature. But the game was still a good run-out for the Derby County players as they gear up for what promises to be a very testing 2024/25 season in the Championship.
The Rams will be tipped to struggle having come up from League One. But their impressive summer transfer window so far is giving fans reason to believe that their side can beat the drop.
And in training, Warne has been particularly impressed by two new players.
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Paul Warne praise for Derby County duo Ben Osborn and Kenzo Goudmijn
Speaking to the club after the win over Matlock Town, Warne gave his verdict on Osborn, despite his absence, and on fellow summer arrival Goudmijn who played little under half-an-hour v Matlock.
Warne said of Osborn: “We’ve not seen Ben Osborn yet – we’ve seen him in training and he looks like [Zinedine] Zidane!”
And Warne added on Goudmijn, who Derby County have signed on a permanent deal from AZ Alkmaar: “He is what we want a midfielder to be, he always wants to play forward.
“We’ve been really pleased with him – he’s only trained a couple of days but I think you can see that he knows what he’s going to do with the ball when he gets it. He’s a good addition.”
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Paul Warne may still have reservations over midfield department at Derby County
Goudmijn and Osborn certainly add depth to what was previously a depleted central midfield department at Pride Park.
In Osborn, Warne is adding some proven Championship quality, and in Goudmijn he’s signing a very exciting player who could on to achieve big things in England.
Though Warne may fancy another central midfielder during this summer’s transfer window to provide enough depth to last what is going to be a rigorous Championship campaign, especially so if he adopts the favoured 3-5-2 formation.
Finding another one with enough Championship quality may be tough. It may also be tough to tempt another central player to the club after the Rams have already signed Osborn and Goudmijn, as there may be reservations about game time.
But Derby County have certainly made a steady start to the summer and the signings of Osborn and Goudmijn are particularly impressive.