"Crucial" - Derby County transfer demand issued involving David Ozoh | OneFootball

FLW's Derby County fan pundit has given the owners a January transfer window demand

Derby County have made a solid start to life back in the Championship after gaining League One promotion last season.

Paul Warne’s side are faring well in the second division, and have more than held their own in the opening few months.

They will be hoping to secure a mid-table finish and avoid any kind of relegation battle in their bid to cement themselves back at this level, and the January transfer window could be crucial to achieving that goal, as it offers the club a chance to make some changes to the first-team squad despite strengthening over the summer.

The Rams will already be planning out their potential winter window activity, with the market set to open on 1 January.

When asked what transfer demand would you give to the club’s owner for January, FLW’s Derby fan pundit Shaun Woodward claimed that a new striker should be their highest priority in an ideal world.

However, he’s warned that David Ozoh’s injury issues could lead to them needing a new midfielder first instead.

“If I could send one transfer demand it would be, depending on Ozoh, if he’s not fit, then we need a replacement for him,” Woodward told Football League World.

"He really is the driving force in the midfield. - he can do the job of [Ebou] Adams and the job of Kenzo [Goudmijn] in one.

“Without him, we don’t look like we’ve got the right balance in midfield, and that’ll be crucial moving forward into the new year.

“So that would be my priority if he’s not fit.

“If he is fit, then we have to go out and get a striker who can impose himself on centre-halves, be a real handful, a target man as such.

“Because the way we play, we’re not creating much, so we need someone who is literally going to occupy two centre-halves, and give our wingers a bit more space and someone to aim at.

“So that would be my number one priority if Ozoh is fit.”

David Ozoh's injury issue outlined as Derby County absence continues

Ozoh has been absent for Derby since their 1-0 win over Cardiff City all the way back in mid-September.

He has missed nearly two months of action, and is unlikely to feature until after the November international break, according to Derbyshire Live.

The Crystal Palace loanee started each of County's opening five fixtures, before suffering the hamstring injury that has partially sidelined him for a significant amount of time.

But a quad muscle issue has hampered his recovery process, with no concrete timeline given for his return to Paul Warne's side.

Derby County will hope that David Ozoh returns to fitness in order to sign a new striker

January is always a difficult market to find good value in, and that will be especially true when searching for a new forward.

Derby do lack a consistent goal scorer, with Jerry Yates not providing the goods that was expected of him, and that may hurt their chances of avoiding a relegation battle as the season goes on.

Perhaps a loan move can be made to improve their options for the rest of the campaign, but will be difficult for the Rams as other clubs will also be looking for similar targets.

However, Derby will hopefully have Ozoh back in the side by then, so that they can prioritise improving this area of the squad - if they also need to land a midfielder too, then that could distract them from their striker chase.