Derby County eyeing Birmingham City transfer raid for £1m man - John Eustace has signed him before | OneFootball

Derby County manager John Eustace is looking to add the Birmingham City centre-back to his ranks this summer

Derby County are targeting a transfer for Birmingham City centre-back Dion Sanderson.

The 25-year-old spent the latter half of the 2024/25 campaign on loan at Blackburn Rovers, making 12 appearances at Ewood Park as the Lancashire club finished on the cusp of the play-offs.

It was former Rovers boss John Eustace who commissioned that deal whilst he was still in the dugout at the Lancashire outfit, and the Derby manager is now keen to bring Sanderson to Pride Park.

Derby County eyeing up Dion Sanderson transfer

Eustace clearly rates the defender highly from their time together at Birmingham City and is now looking to sign him for a third time.

According to Alan Nixon via Patreon, Derby are willing to grant their manager’s wish, as they prepare to back Eustace this summer.

Sanderson is reportedly valued at £1 million by Birmingham, a price the Rams’ boss is willing to pay for the 25-year-old’s services.

The club will soon inform Eustace of exactly how much money he has to spend in the upcoming window, as he looks to guide Derby further up the Championship table next season.

Nixon also states that the Rams’chief is also competing for the more experienced pairing of Danny Batth - another player signed by Eustace at Rovers - and Craig Dawson on free transfers.

Dion Sanderson could return to his best under John Eustace if he gets Derby County move

Not too long ago, Sanderson was highly rated as a young defender starting regularly for Birmingham.

However, once Eustace was dismissed as the Blues’ boss in October 2023, the defender struggled to maintain his form and fell out of favour at St. Andrew’s following the club’s relegation to League One.

The defender was acquired by Blackburn and his former manager in the 2025 January transfer window but would only feature five times under Eustace.

Derby County had convinced the 45-year-old to take a leap of faith and drag them out of the relegation zone in February, with the promise of future riches that Rovers simply couldn’t match.

This ultimately proved the right decision for Eustace, but it left Sanderson in the same awkward position he departed Birmingham to get out of.

Now, with Derby’s manager set to be locked in for the long term, it could provide Sanderson with the opportunity to enjoy regular playing time once more.

The centre-half had just begun running out for full 90 minutes at Rovers before Eustace left and will hope to find that form once more at Pride Park next term.