How John Eustace feels about major change that will affect Derby County next season | OneFootball

The Rams' boss has reacted to the news that the Championship play-offs will now see six teams compete.

John Eustace has reacted to the news that the EFL Championship play-offs will expand from the 2026/27 campaign, as he prepares his Derby County side for the visit of Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday afternoon.

The Rams have had a strong season in the second tier, and they still have a chance of finishing in the top six, but Wrexham did have quite the advantage over the East Midlands outfit right now with just 11 games to go.

Nevertheless, stranger things have happened in the Championship and Derby will still fancy their chances of putting together a late run and overtaking the Red Dragons into sixth, with the two sides currently separated by six points with Southampton sat between them.

Yet, if they were to end next season in eighth place, then they would feature in the play-offs, and now their head coach has spoken out on the decision taken by the EFL and its clubs to change the way the competition is run from August onwards.

John Eustace reacts to news of the EFL Championship play-offs changing

The play-offs make the EFL, and the excitement that they can create has seen memories made and dreams dashed in an instance, and Derby are no stranger to them. They won promotion to the Premier League in 2007 through this route, while they have also suffered heartbreak on a number of occasions.

However, this season will be the last time that only four teams compete, and Eustace has given his reaction to that decision. He said (via: BBC Derby Sport): "I think it has its pros and cons. It certainly makes the season a little bit more exciting. It'll probably help teams who have had a lot of injuries and smaller squads to keep fighting to the end of the season. There's always that opportunity to get into the play-offs.

"So, I think it's got its pros and cons. When I was at Kidderminster, it went from four teams in the play-offs to six in the second year and I think the team that finished seventh or eighth ended up getting promoted. Teams get different runs of form throughout the season and say if you had injury problems throughout difficult moments in the year, and they all come back in the last 10 or 15 games, it can have its ups."

When asked if this change could potentially weaken the Premier League, Eustace replied: "Maybe, but if you look at the teams that go up, unless they spend hundreds of millions of pounds, it's always very difficult to stay up there, so I don't think it makes much difference."

Derby County could benefit from the Championship play-off change next season

While there has been a mixed response to the decision to expand the play-offs, the Rams may just benefit next season if they are not promoted in 2025/26, with it looking likely that those coming down from the Premier League will be extremely strong.

The likes of Nottingham Forest, West Ham United, Burnley, Wolverhampton Wanderers and even Tottenham Hotspur are all battling for survival in the top flight, and over half of those are established top flight teams at this moment in time.

Therefore, the fight for promotion will be incredibly tight next season, and may even be dominated by the relegated trio. Derby may well enjoy the fact that the play-off places are expanded down to eighth, as it gives more opportunity for a surprise promotion.