Derby County backed to land £1.5m-rated defender ahead of Stoke City, Rangers and Lincoln | OneFootball

FLW's Derby fan pundit shares their thoughts on the Rams' link to Dundee defender Luke Graham amid Championship interest

Derby County will be playing Championship football next season once again, but optimism has engulfed Pride Park ahead of the upcoming campaign, with the summer transfer window providing John Eustace the opportunity to add the finishing touches on his Rams squad.

It's been a season of major improvement for Derby, who this time last year had just barely scraped survival after a goalless draw at home to Stoke City on the final day.

Although their campaign would finish in heartbreak once again, this time it was due to missing out on a place in the play-offs on the final day, with a 2-1 home defeat to Sheffield United, as well as Hull City's victory over Norwich City, confirming their place in the second tier for another year.

Despite this being a big disappointment for Derby, in the long term, it may have been for the best, as Eustace can continue building his project at Pride Park without the worry of Premier League football hanging over him.

With Derby in talks with Saudi Arabian boxing chief Turki Alalshikh over a potential investment deal, this summer could be an exciting one in terms of incomings, and the Rams have set their sights on one of the hottest prospects north of the border, but face strong competition for his services.

Should Derby County swoop for in-demand Dundee defender Luke Graham?

Dundee centre-half Luke Graham is set to be hot property this summer, with the race for the Scottish youth international's signature intensifying.

Graham, 22, has recently come onto the radar of both Stoke and Lincoln City, but has previously attracted interest from the likes of Rangers, Portsmouth, Charlton Athletic, Norwich City and Derby.

The Scot made 40 appearances across all competitions for Dundee this season, and his performances as a left-footed defender has attracted interest from some of the biggest clubs in Scotland and in the English second tier.

Football League World's Derby fan pundit, Shaun Woodward, shares their thoughts on the club's links with Graham and whether he is someone they would welcome at Pride Park next season.

Shaun told FLW: "I think centre-half is probably a position we do need to strengthen in, and if Langas were to leave, if we potentially sold him in the summer, or he's had a few injury problems as well where he wasn't playing, then it's somewhere where we do struggle.

"We rely on Clarke for so much, and he's bailed us out so much this season; we can't always rely on him to be the main man. He needs players alongside him who can step up as well, and the options other than Langas are quite slim at the moment, with Sanderson being the obvious choice to come in, but he's got a mistake in him.

"He's an okay Championship player, but I think bringing in a young lad who's 22, if he's able to step up, then we've got a player for many years who can hopefully build a really good partnership with Clarke.

"I just have this feeling Langas is going to go, and so that would leave, probably, for me, a gap alongside Clarke.

"Graham's had a very good first full season in the Premier League up in Scotland, played 40 plus games, really good age, good grounding up there. So I'd welcome this signing, and if Eustace thinks he can come in and improve the starting 11, then I'm all for it."

Derby County will be looking for promotion in 2026-27 - Luke Graham can help to land that

Having narrowly missed out on a place in the top six this time around, Eustace will be keen to ensure his Derby squad is best prepared to supersede that placement next year.

The former Birmingham City and Blackburn Rovers boss endured a busy summer window last time around, bringing in the likes of Patrick Agyemang, Carlton Morris, Lewis Travis, and Rhian Brewster on permanent deals, whilst each of David Ozoh, Bobby Clark, and Ben Brereton Diaz thrived on loan.

Eustace has already stated his desire to bring back some of his loan stars and keep the core of the squad together, and adding little bits of quality to their ranks as well may help them get over the line next time.

As Shaun stated, Langas could well be on the move this summer. Having joined the club in January 2025 for around £4 million, the Norwegian has struggled with injuries, and with the likes of Dion Sanderson and Danny Batth as competition, as well as Clarke, his place in the side is not a given.

If Graham were to join as well, his game time would be under even more contention, though this shouldn't dissuade Derby