New claim made on Derby County's Premier League record - "I just can't see" | OneFootball

FLW's Derby County fan pundit has given his verdict on whether their 11-point Premier League record will ever be broken

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Derby County’s claim to fame in modern football is that they hold the unwanted record of earning the least amount of points in a single Premier League season.

The Rams finished bottom of the top flight table in 2008, and were the first side in the competition’s history to have their relegation confirmed in March.

The team managed a measly sum of just 11 points after 38 games, consigning them to a place back in the Championship.

Their promotion in 2007 under Billy Davies was a triumphant moment for supporters, with their play-off victory over West Brom ending a five-year wait for Premier League football.

But it ended up being a season to forget, with just one win to their name, along with eight draws and 29 defeats.

Derby County’s record will never be broken

When asked if that 11-point record will ever be broken, FLW’s Derby fan pundit, Shaun Woodward, claimed that it will unfortunately stand forever.

He believes the quality of promoted sides now mean that they will never be so unprepared for top flight football as the Rams were back in 2007.

“I can’t see this ever getting beaten, sadly,” Woodward told Football League World.

“There will never be another Derby 11 point season.

“Southampton did come close (last season), but the majority of teams that go up now, they’re far better equipped to deal with the Premier League.

“Even the very worst teams surely are getting more than 11 points.

“That’s only four wins; you could actually lose 34 games and still get 12 points.

“I just can’t see anyone being that horrific again.

“I tried to erase that season from my memory, so it’s not great talking about it, but sadly that’s a record that we’re stuck with forever.”

Davies’ side were incredibly unprepared back in 2007, and the team simply wasn’t good enough to contend in the Premier League.

Southampton earned just 12 points last season, which is the closest any side has come in the years since Derby’s relegation in 2008.

The Derbyshire outfit also haven’t been back to the top flight since their humiliating season, so supporters have been left to stew in the misery of that campaign for all these years.

Frank Lampard came close to guiding the club to promotion in 2019, but a play-off final defeat to Aston Villa meant they missed out.

Derby County’s record could be broken

Southampton reaching 12 points last season was a real opportunity for that record to finally be broken, and it looked like it could happen until a few draws got them over the line in April and May.

It’s certainly possible that someone could do worse than that Derby side, but it will have to take a perfect storm of a distressing team against a very competitive 19, as the Saints were able to pick up points against the other relegated sides that proved crucial to reaching 12.

After all this time, it should be seen now as more of a badge of honour for the Rams. They’ve left their mark on Premier League history, and it’s been so long that fans can move past the bad memories of all those horrible defeats.

Of course, no fan wants to have their club associated with records for being bad, but there is something to be said for being known as worse than every other team, as long as it’s just for one season.