Derby County secured their first win of the Championship season in their last outing.
The Rams secured promotion back to the second division last season, ending a two-year hiatus away from the Championship.
Derby County did not win League One and were expected to struggle to avoid relegation in the 2024/25 campaign.
Paul Warne took his side to Ewood Park on the opening day of the season and was given a harsh reality check.
Derby lost 4-2 to Blackburn Rovers on Friday, August 9th, suggesting they were in for a very rough season.
The Derbyshire outfit went on to pick up a win over Chesterfield in the League Cup but then faced the daunting task of taking on Boro are Pride Park this past weekend.
However, despite Michael Carrick’s side being tipped for promotion this season, it was the Rams who came out on top.
Total cost of the Derby County XI that beat Middlesbrough 1-0
Derby beat Middlesbrough 1-0 on Saturday, earning a huge three points to get them up and running for the campaign.
Nathaniel Mendez-Laing scored the only goal of the match, capitalising on an error from Isaiah Jones in the 14th minute.
The victory over Boro is impressive, but becomes even more surprising when you look at how much Derby paid for the eleven players who started the match.
In defence, Josh Vickers, Eiran Cashin, Curtis Nelson and Callum Elder were all free transfers or in Cashin’s case, came from the academy.
Kane Wilson is the only player in Warne’s backline who cost a transfer fee. The exact figure is unknown but Derby World suggest it is around the £2m mark.
In midfield, Kenzo Goudmijn cost £820,000, according to Transfermarkt, while David Ozoh is on loan from Crystal Palace and Ben Osborn was signed on a free.
Up front, meanwhile, goalscorer Mendez-Laing was signed for nothing, as were James Collins and Kayden Jackson.
Paul Warne must be given credit for Middlesbrough win
All told, the Derby eleven that beat Middlesbrough cost somewhere around the £2.82m mark.
Warne must be given all the credit in the world for earning such a positive result with such limited resources.
But the plaudits will only like continue to roll in for the Derby boss when you look at the Middlesbrough side that started the game.
Aidan Morris alone cost the Teessiders £3.18m from Columbus Crew this summer, nearly £300,000 more than the entire Derby eleven.
Middlesbrough also had plenty of talent on the bench, including £4.5m striker Tommy Conway, but Derby were still able to hold out for a win.