Decision time on Tom and Chris for Derby
CRAIG Forsyth’s new deal means Derby County are left with big decisions over two contracts.
Forsyth’s contract had an option to extend, which has been triggered, meaning three players are out of contract at the end of June – Chris Martin, Tom Huddlestone and Ikechi Anya.
Anya, who has not played for the first team in two years, is likely to leave the club but Martin and Huddlestone have been regular starters when fit and available.
Martin has made 29 appearances this season, 21 starts and eight as a substitute, and scored 10 goals.
Two of those came in Derby’s last game – the 3-0 home victory over Blackburn Rovers on March 8, before the coronavirus outbreak halted the season.
Huddlestone’s season has been blighted by injuries that have forced the 33-year-old midfielder to miss big chunks of the campaign.
The loan deals of Matt Clarke and Ben Hamer are due to expire on June 30 and Derby will speak to Brighton & Hove Albion and Huddersfield Town about extending those deals, given the uncertainty over when the suspended Championship season will be completed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Here is a list of Derby contracts and when they run out.
MEANWHILE, Derby County goalkeeper coach Shay Given is worried that some lower league clubs will not survive the financial blow of the coronavirus pandemic.
Football in the Premier League and the EFL has been suspended for two months due to the Covid-19 outbreak and there are no signs of a restart in the near future.
“It’s frustrating, it’s been a long few weeks,” Given told RTE’S Sunday Sport.
“We’re looking for a way forward, to get football back on, it would give us a boost and a focus away from Covid-19.
“There are talks behind the scenes that we don’t know about, the EFL will be governed by the Premier League and it’s frustrating as you are waiting for the phone to ring or see what the next step is, you wonder ‘are we back training next week?.’”
Given believes it would take three or four weeks for the players to be fit to play again.
“So it can’t happen overnight, they need to get back training, it will take time,” he said.
Given sees a major impact on the game financially.
“We have a good medical team behind us (at Derby) and the players will be well prepped on what’s the best thing to do,” he said.
“We see the German clubs back training but doing individual training, keeping a distance, temperature checks when you get into the building, and I am sure we will do the same.
“But will the clubs in League One and League Two have the finances to do that sort of thing? I’m not sure they will.
“We just want to get football back on again, get the clubs back up and running.
“At Derby, it’s a big drain on the club and there’s a big strain on the owner, Mel Morris, as there are no gate receipts. It’s around this time of the year you’d be selling season tickets for next season and that’s not there. It’s a tough time for all the clubs and some of them will be bankrupted by this, some clubs won’t be back.”
Given is backing the Caregiven charity which is raising funds to provide PPE for frontline staff on the NHS in the UK.