Kayden Jackson exit prediction made at Derby County - "If I'm realistic" | OneFootball

FLW’s Derby County fan pundit believes Kayden Jackson will depart the club on loan during the January transfer window.

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 have had a slow start to the new Championship season under John Eustace.

The Rams have collected just two points from their opening four games and are yet to taste victory after suffering late heartbreak at Ipswich Town last weekend, something they will be looking to rectify immediately after the international break.

The East Midlands outfit has undergone a significant period of change to the playing squad though, with 14 players exiting the club, followed by 13 new additions, as the summer arrivals take time to adapt to Eustace’s methods.

Despite 14 players leaving Pride Park over the course of the summer, some Derby fans may have expected more senior first-team figures to say goodbye due to such a massive revamp, but some have stayed on to fight for their place and hopefully contribute towards a successful term.

With this in mind, FLW’s Derby County fan pundit has opened up on a player he expected to leave during the summer transfer window, and where his future lies ahead of January.

Derby County backed to part ways with Kayden Jackson in January despite a summer stay

Speaking to Football League World, Derby County fan pundit Shaun Woodward thinks that Kayden Jackson is one of the Rams players who will have to move on in January, believing his gametime will be very limited when all of their attacking options are fit and ready to play.

Shaun said: “Right now, we’ve had so many injuries, so it has been hard to know what we’re going to look like once we’ve got a settled squad, but I do believe when everyone is back and fit, then Kayden Jackson will find gametime really hard to come by, and I think he’ll be lucky to make the bench once we’ve got all of our attacking players back into the squad.

“He’s been playing so far this season, but if I’m realistic, I can’t see him making the bench going forward, so he would be the one that should be going out on loan to get some gametime after Christmas.”

Kayden Jackson must seek regular minutes in important stage of his career

Kayden Jackson has played a part in all four of Derby County’s league games so far this season, utilised either on the right-wing or as a centre-forward.

But this has largely been down to injuries in the squad, with summer arrival Patrick Agyemang continuing his recovery from a hernia operation, while Corey Blackett-Taylor has suffered more injury frustration by picking up a hamstring problem on the opening weekend.

When the duo return, they will be competing for starting spots alongside the likes of Carlton Morris, Andi Weimann, Rhian Brewster, Lars-Jorgen Salvesen, Ben Brereton-Diaz and Joe Ward, with the Rams having a plethora of options to choose from – so beneficial over the course of a hectic campaign.

Despite making more than 200 appearances across the Championship and League One, Jackson is now entering his thirties, and John Eustace will surely prefer more youthful attackers who can make a difference and stand the test of a 46-game slog.

This throws the attacker’s future at Pride Park into doubt, and with so much uncertainty about his minutes, it seems the best move for all parties that he pursues a switch away and can be a much more valued figure lower down the pyramid.

A move to League One may develop, although he’ll be hopeful of holding out for a move to a Championship rival and showing Derby what they are missing, should the Rams decide to part ways with the former Ipswich Town man in the next few months.