Derby County player 'needs to move on' despite having 'all the talent in the world'

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Football League World

·2 March 2026

Derby County player 'needs to move on' despite having 'all the talent in the world'

FLW's Derby County Fan Pundit has told the Rams that they must let Corey Blackett-Taylor go this summer.

Derby County's play-off hopes were strengthened on Saturday afternoon as they fought back from 1-0 down to win 3-1 at Pride Park against Blackburn Rovers, the first time that they have come from behind to win a game since January 2024.

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The Rams remain six points off the top six, but after back-to-back defeats in the league in the week prior to their victory over the Lancashire outfit, it was a much-needed win for John Eustace and his team, and one that took them over their 50-point target for the season already.

While a play-off finish will remain the target, attention will already be turning to the summer and the recruitment team will be drawing up plans for all eventualities, with it likely that there will be plenty of new faces through the door at Pride Park.

However, with new signings, comes outgoings and Derby are likely to have a few with contracts set to expire, as well as those who are out of favour unlikely to stick around - including a promotion hero who is currently out on loan in League One.

Derby County told they must part ways with out on-loan winger this summer

Corey Blackett-Taylor's time with the Rams has been extremely underwhelming, with the winger spending a significant amount of his time in the treatment room, rather than on the pitch.

Therefore, a loan move to Bolton Wanderers in the January transfer window came at the right time for a player struggling for minutes. Now, Football League World has asked their Derby Fan Pundit, Shaun Woodward, if he believes the 28-year-old should be released this summer.

He said: "Corey Blackett-Taylor needs to move on. He's never fulfilled his potential at Derby, he's always had injuries, never had a good run in the side. Every time he seems to have got to a place where he could kick on, something goes wrong.

"It's been the story of his career at Derby. As much potential as he had, he's never fulfilled it. He's just not what we need moving forward. We need players that are quite robust and are going to be able to play two or three games a week, which Blackett-Taylor just can't do. He's far too injury prone and inconsistent."

Shaun continued: "He’s got all the talent in the world but was just never going to be the right fit for Derby. It was worth taking a punt on him because he had moments where he was electric at Charlton, and he just never continued that for Derby. I wish him all the best and I hope he does find that consistency and stays injury free. But, we need to be looking at bigger and better things now moving forward."

Corey Blackett-Taylor has only shown flashes of brilliance at Derby County

In 35 appearances for Derby, Blackett-Taylor has scored just the one goal and provided only two assists. His only strike came in a 3-2 defeat to Norwich City in September 2024, and this was somewhat of a consolation goal in itself.

He picked up one of his two assists against Stoke City on the opening day of the campaign, with his only one before that coming against Portsmouth in April 2024 - when the Rams were still in League One.

His lack of availability was a frustration that both Paul Warne and John Eustace had to experience, and this summer seems like the right time for the two parties to go their separate ways.

Nevertheless, there will always be a question of 'What if?' surrounding Blackett-Taylor and his flashes of brilliance in a Derby shirt.