Derby County brought their pre-season campaign to an end with a very professional 2-0 victory over Greek side Atromitos at Pride Park.
The Rams debuted their new away shirt in DE24 on Saturday afternoon as Corey Blackett-Taylor continued his form with yet another goal from the penalty spot, while Kenzo Goudmijn scored directly from a corner.
Despite some injury concerns throughout the last few weeks, it’s been a positive summer for the East Midlands outfit. Rhian Brewster is the latest player to join the club, but John Eustace will still be keen to add to his squad.
On Thursday, it was reported that Derby had tabled a £1.2m bid for Sunderland midfielder Nectarios Triantis. That was rejected, but now Eustace has played down that interest.
John Eustace speaks out on Derby County’s Nectarios Triantis interest
Triantis had a very successful loan in Scotland with Hibernian last season, and while the Edinburgh club are unable to re-sign the Sydney-born ace, they know everything about him.
The same looks like it can be said for Eustace, who was asked about any potential Derby interest in the 22-year-old after the Rams’ victory on Saturday. He said (via: BBC Radio Derby): “That’s not a name that I’ve been speaking about with the club, I think his agent might be putting that out there possibly.
“But I do know the boy, he’s a good young lad. He’s 21 or 22, he had a good loan last year at Hibs, I think it was.
“He’s a good player, but at the moment, he’s not somebody who we’re looking at.”
John Eustace will still be keen to sign another midfielder
The last week has been excellent for the Rams from a transfer point of view, with the likes of David Ozoh and Brewster joining the club.
Ozoh has ‘unfinished business’ at Derby, and will be raring to go after an injury-hit campaign while on loan in 2024/25.
However, Eustace will be pushing for another midfielder following so many fitness problems for his team last season, and Triantis should be at the top of his shortlist.
The fact that the 45-year-old knows exactly who the Greek-Australian midfielder is will lead to other questions, but the Rams’ boss is holding his cards close to his chest right now.
