Latest Derby County news: Hull plotting swap deal, Paul Warne on Max Bird, James Collins’ stance
Derby County are widely expected to challenge for automatic promotion in League One this season.
The Rams spent much of last season in the play-off places, but they dropped out of the top six on the final day of the campaign as they were beaten by Sheffield Wednesday.
Derby suffered a huge blow this summer as they lost striker David McGoldrick, who was their top scorer with 25 goals last season, to newly-promoted League Two side Notts County, with the 35-year-old opting against signing a new deal at Pride Park to rejoin the club where he started his career.
There have beean number of other departures, including Jason Knight, Krystian Bielik, James Chester, Curtis Davies and Richard Stearman, but Paul Warne has strengthened his squad this summer with a host of impressive new additions.
Callum Elder, Curtis Nelson, Josh Vickers, Joe Ward, Sonny Bradley, Conor Washington and Kane Wilson have all arrived at the club as Warne looks to secure his fourth promotion from League One after achieving the feat three times previously with Rotherham United.
The Rams get their season underway at home to Wigan Athletic on Saturday and as the countdown to the new campaign continues, we rounded up all the latest news from the club.
What is the latest Derby County news?
Hull plotting swap deal
Hull City had a bid rejected for Derby midfielder Max Bird this week, with the bid said to fall significantly short of the Rams’ valuation.
Bird is well-known to Tigers manager Liam Rosenior after his spells as assistant to Wayne Rooney and interim manager at Pride Park and the 39-year-old is keen to bring him to the MKM Stadium.
The midfielder graduated from the Derby academy and has established himself as an integral part of the first-team, scoring two goals and providing six assists in 48 appearances in all competitions last season.
It seems that Hull are not giving up their pursuit of Bird just yet and journalist Darren Witcoop claims that the Tigers are considering increasing their offer for Bird and could include out-of-favour midfielder Ryan Woods as part of their next proposal.
What has Paul Warne said about Max Bird’s Derby County future?
Warne confirmed that Hull had made a bid for Bird, but he says the two clubs are far apart in their valuations of the midfielder.
The 50-year-old also made it clear that the Rams do not want to sell Bird this summer.
“He’s had a really good pre-season, he’s enjoying his role in being a bit more attacking, but in respect of bids and phonecalls, it always happens for your best players,” Warne told DerbyshireLive.
“There has been a bid come in for him and I have spoken to the player and the agent. We have politely rejected it and that happens all the time.
“I would expect more bids to come in for a Max Bird or whoever. You look at it, see what you think and the club has a worth on everyone.
“Tottenham don’t want to sell Harry Kane, but they have a figure they want to get to. We don’t want to sell Max and there is no necessity to.
“He isn’t knocking my door down either. The offer is nowhere near what we would consider a selling point and as it stands, that’s the end of it for me.
“I do expect them to come back with another offer. I just think the distances between what our value is on the player – who is an important part of our team – and what Hull values him as, are just nowhere near.
“I don’t foresee anything happening down that route. Respectfully, I don’t like to talk about players in the public domain, but the offer we had was not anywhere near consideration.
“When the chief exec put it in front of me, I knew what his answer was because I could see his face. I just read it and thought that’s not an offer for a player of Max’s ability. Unless there is a super duper shift, I just can’t see it being something that any party would want to do.”
Shrewsbury eye Collins
According to the Shropshire Star, Shrewsbury Town are interested in signing Derby striker James Collins.
Collins joined the Rams from Cardiff City last summer and he scored 12 goals and provided two assists in 52 appearances in all competitions last season.
A move to the Croud Meadow would see Collins return to the Shrews for a third spell, but Derby are reportedly unwilling to consider any offers until they sign at least one new striker.
It would be a huge surprise if the Rams allowed Collins to depart after losing McGoldrick, but it would be a coup for the Shrews if they can land his signature.
