Derby County boss Paul Warne has explained the reason for a delay over a transfer for a goalkeeper, as talks continue over three options.
The Rams have spent all summer in search of a new number one, following an exit for Joe Wildsmith as a free agent.
Josh Vickers has been the only senior option in the squad during pre-season, following a campaign of competing for his place in the team.
The former Arsenal man is expected to have plenty of competition though, with Warne in search of another goalkeeper option.
Plenty of names have been linked with Derby, but are yet to make their way to Pride Park with just a few days until the Championship campaign is underway.
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Paul Warne on Derby County goalkeeper transfer
Derby County boss Warne has discussed the latest situation surrounding a new goalkeeper joining the club, following his side’s 2-1 victory over Real Valladolid in pre-season.
He told BBC Radio Derby: “You know how difficult it is for me to speak about players at other clubs, but I understand you have to ask me the question, we’re in for a couple of three ‘keepers…”
“So the goalkeepers I’m after at the moment, they’re contracted to a club, they’re not free agents, they’re not just sitting around waiting for me to phone them and get them in and send a taxi out to pick them up.
“They’re contracted to clubs, so the ones we’re trying to chase, as we are with other players around, we’re always at the control of what their club wants to do.
“That’s the most honest I can give you without giving you everything.
“We should have another goalkeeper in the building by next week but what I won’t do is sign a sub-standard goalkeeper to get us through a couple of days with Josh [Vickers] just in case the worst happens and then we end up with a ‘keeper who is honking for the next 46 weeks when I might have to be patient, that might be the case.
“I’ve said all along I really like Josh, Josh is my goalie and my number one at the moment, whoever we bring in is going to have to do their best to get him out of that number one slot.
“So it’s not an emergency, it’s just a fact that more and more in football, everything is out there.
“So it’s just one of those situations where we’re knocking on the door of a few clubs to say ‘Look, what’s happening? We’ve met all the criteria, but we’re still not getting him’, so it’s frustrating but the game of football away from the grass is.”
Derby County goalkeeper targets
While it’s not clear who some of the goalkeeper targets could be, there are some indications as to who is on the radar.
Jacob Widell Zetterstrom has been heavily linked with a move to Derby, with the Swedish shotstopper featuring for Djurgarden.
Any move for the goalkeeper has had to wait though, with his side featuring in Europa Conference League action over the past few weeks.
Leicester City’s Daniel Iversen has also been linked with a switch to Derby, though it remains to be seen if the finances for that deal could be met.
While it’s unclear which other targets may be on the cards, it seems as though plans are in place to accelerate a deal over the next few days.