Duo left Derby County for Crystal Palace - they must seriously regret it now | OneFootball

Luke Plange and Malcolm Ebiowei departed the Rams for South London three years ago

Luke Plange and Malcolm Ebiowei departed Derby County for Crystal Palace three years ago with the promise of Premier League opportunity beckoning.

Fast-forward to now, and both players must be wondering what might have been had they remained at Pride Park during the Rams' darkest hour.

Both youngsters were offered deals to stay at the East Midlands outfit before their moves to Palace — the club confirmed they had made "an attractive and competitive offer" to retain Ebiowei when he left.

While Plange's offer was not officially confirmed, the logic is there that Derby would've tried everything to keep their breakthrough striker who had netted three goals in nine appearances under Wayne Rooney by that point.

Luke Plange, Malcolm Ebiowei promise has gone after leaving Derby County for Crystal Palace

On the face of it, Luke Plange has become somewhat of a footballing nomad, appearing for six different clubs since his £1m move to the Eagles in January 2022.

Albeit not all permanent moves, his loan journey has taken him across Europe — from Belgium with RWD Molenbeek, to Lincoln City and Carlisle United back in England.

Plange had only scored four goals between these three clubs before he signed for HJK Helsinki in Finland, and then back in the UK with Motherwell. After being released by Palace at the end of last season, he now plays in Switzerland for Zurich-based Grasshopper.

Ebiowei's path has been just as rough, involving four different clubs since his Palace switch, although he did make five senior appearances for the top-flight club.

Similarly to Plange, Ebiowei endured disappointing loan spells of his own — at Hull City, RWD Molenbeekm and Oxford United before his permanent move to Blackpool in August.

In total, he played 27 times across all of these four clubs. However, Blackpool terminated his contract on the 4th September, just one month after the winger signed for the club.

The Seasiders were tight-lipped as to the reasons why Ebiowei is no longer at the club, stating the 22-year-old left by "mutual consent" and they wish him "all the best for the future."

When considering Manchester United were apparently interested in bringing Ebiowei to Old Trafford, Steve Bruce's decision to axe the former Arsenal and Rangers youth player after just three league appearances off the bench shows how far the winger has fallen since his early days at Derby.

'What if' Luke Plange and Malcolm Ebiowei stayed at Derby County

Palace's approach of stockpiling young talent and sending them out on multiple loan spells has certainly proven counterproductive for both Plange and Ebiowei.

The pattern, though, is becoming increasingly familiar in respect of promising young players joining Premier League sides with high expectations, only to find themselves shuffled between different clubs on loan.

You can argue that is happening to former Ram Eiran Cashin, who signed for the South London club's rivals, Brighton, in a reported £9m deal. After only making two appearances in the second half of 24/25, the Republic of Ireland youth international has been sent on loan to Birmingham City.

Derby's promotion back to the Championship under Paul Warne two seasons ago meant the club's long-term prospects were not as bleak as they appeared when both players initially left for Palace, although that is all thanks to David Clowes - the reluctant owner who saved the club.

Ultimately, their decision to leave Derby for Palace has resulted in a few years of instability thanks to multiple loan moves.

As Ebiowei finds himself without a club at just 22-years-old, and Plange continuing on his European journey, both players must surely wonder what might have been had they stayed loyal to the club that gave them their first taste of professional football.

Of course, the moves to Selhurst Park could have been potentially life-changing ones for the pair, and given the success stories of previous EFL stars with the Eagles such as Ebere Eze and Michael Olise, few really could have begrudged them at the time for moving on. But, in hindsight, they will both be left wondering how differently it could have all played out.