Derby County told to avoid Birmingham City transfer - "Stick with what we've got" | OneFootball

FLW's Rams fan pundit has weighed in with his opinion on the links between Derby and Dion Sanderson

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…

Dion Sanderson was surplus to requirements last season at Birmingham City, after making just two League One appearances during the first half of the campaign.

And the handful of games he played in the Championship on loan at Blackburn Rovers in the second half of the 2024/25 term haven't done enough to change Chris Davies' stance.

Blues have brought in Phil Neumann and Eiran Cashin, two players who play in Sanderson's position, this summer, and the former Wolves academy man has been excluded from their pre-season tour of Portugal.

Birmingham's sporting director, Craig Gardner, is focused on moving those players to new clubs. GiveMeSport has revealed loose foreign interest, whilst Alan Nixon has stated that Derby County may be interested in seeing him remain in the Championship with a switch to Pride Park.

Derby manager John Eustace was in charge at Ewood Park when Blackburn brought Sanderson in on loan, and has so far made an effort to sign players he is familiar with during his first summer window at Pride Park, with former Rovers players Danny Batth and Andy Weimann coming in permanently, and Owen Beck arriving on loan from Liverpool.

However, FLW's Rams fan pundit, Shaun Woodward, believes that a reunion with Sanderson should be something that Eustace steers clear of.

Warning put out by Derby County fan pundit to refrain from signing Dion Sanderson

Speaking to Football League World, Woodard feels that Derby need to focus on bolstering their quality in other positions in the squad before they think about signing a central defender.

But even then, he feels that Sanderson wouldn't be good enough to play at Pride Park this season.

"Not for me," Woodward replied when questioned about the reported interest in the 25-year-old. "I think we've got plenty of defenders now, especially when players come back fit again.

"Sanderson was barely used by Birmingham [last season], and was sent out on loan to Blackburn and didn't pull up any trees over there, so I'd stick with what we've got."

On which positions Derby should be prioritising this summer, Woodward added, "Full-backs, wingers and an attacking central midfielder before we bring in anymore centre-backs.

"For me, I wish Sanderson all the best, but I don't think he makes our squad or team any better, so I'd be looking elsewhere."

Dion Sanderson needs a reset, but it shouldn't be at Derby County

Sanderson's career stalled significantly last season, and the 25-year-old should be desperate for a fresh setting this summer.

The 25-year-old was regarded as one of the most exciting young defenders in the second tier when he was signed permanently by the Blues two years ago after excelling in various Championship loan spells at Cardiff City, Queens Park Rangers and Birmingham themselves.

He took his appearance tally in the Championship to over 100 in the 2023/24 campaign after playing 37 times at St Andrew's, but under Chris Davies, his usage drastically decreased.

His links with current Derby boss John Eustace could see a return to playing under him, but Sanderson wasn't exactly first choice at Blackburn under the current Rams manager, starting just one of the seven league games under him before he made the switch to Pride Park in mid-February.

The 25-year-old will likely be after regular game time once more after a frustrating 2024/25 campaign, but he probably won't be getting that if he made the switch to Derby.