LESSONS LEARNT BY KID CHRISTIE
CYRUS Christie became one of the fall guys for Derby’s catastrophic implosion at the end of last season and, as he looks to rebuild this term, the defender acknowledges that the criticism was warranted.
Derby’s collapse from apparent promotion certainties to missing the play-offs has been well-documented, with Christie coming in for particularly harsh criticism.
And the right-back admits it was tough to take.
“Last season the confidence was low,” he explained. “The team took a knock and I took a lot of flak.
“But I deserved the flak because I wasn’t really at it.”
It hasn’t been all rosy for Christie since, with the 22year-old being dropped for new boss Paul Clement’s first game in charge.
He has faced a battle for a first-team spot ever since, but the Republic of Ireland international is trying to take the positives out of the situation.
“I have played games and then been out of the team and it has been hard, I can’t lie,” added Christie.“My head has been all over the place, but it is part of my development and when the opportunities are given I have to take them.”