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This is why Pearson is the right person for the job and patience needs to be shown. Attitude in football and dressing room culture is vital to a happy team, that is then a successful one. This mess started with Ashton and Johnson - arguably some forced on them, due to players we sold and cashed in on, but ultimately, the process of checking the players coming in was not good enough and did not look beyond their natural and potential ability. Holden walked into a ticking time bomb, with a squad of unfit, unhappy players with a few who were causing issues behind the scenes. Nige has come in - taken stock, and is slowly but surely getting rid of them, to enable the culture required to come back. Players have to do it his way, or no way. When players like Kasper Schmeichel or Matty James speak so highly of him, it is for a reason, however some of our players don't like the harsh realities being served to them behind closed doors. To his credit, Pearson always said it was a 3 year plan to convert and we are nearing the end of year 1. I've no doubt following a summer overhaul, we'll see a big difference in the next 12 months. Today is a good day for this club, and his honesty should be a further warning to those players who think they can do as they wish.

Nice to have a manager who says it how it is instead of just saying he’s going on loan to get game time .

Needs rid of then if he has a bad attitude. Something some former Manager's have been reluctant to do with the bad eggs in the dressing room

Completely agree. There are some that like to think NP’s a bully . Nothing of the sort . He’s exactly what this club needed to turn it around. We’ve had a soft underbelly for years now . You only go one way in that scenario & that’s down . Im excited for the future under nige. This time next season I think there’ll be a big improvement in what we see on the pitch. It’s starts behind the scenes though & it’s the things we don’t see day to day that set the trend .

There is definitely a bit of oomph coming into our club. We are getting tougher and smarter on the pitch and Nige is making his statement off it too. My way or the highway!. Farewell nice, soft, comfortable Bristol City. At last.

Haha i love Nige. Says what the vast majority of us are thinking. I for one am delighted Bakinson is now off the bus. Nothing infuriates me more than seeing a player wearing our great shirt that looks disinterested and lazy, cheerio Ty!

Are Ipswich also taking Bakinson's imaginary friends? You know, those he spends time marking and occasionally passing to......

Yeah, Nige was not exactly subtle when asked about Bakinson going on loan……….……adding that negativity is not something he wants in the squad. GJ did something similar when he got rid of Flapper. Today must have been the longest presser by Nige so far. I thought he was excellent. Straight talking but at the same time not giving anything away. Regarding Bakers situation - it certainly sounded as if NB will be absent for some time yet but that he was around the training squad today to spend time with his teammates to help reduce any feelings of isolation that injured players often have. Having a routine is important - good man management there. I’m even more convinced that Nige is the right man in charge.

Except they don’t any more. Factually correct as ever.

Very engrossing interview. Enjoy listening to NP

https://www.mfc.co.uk/news/an-open-letter-from-steve-gibson-to-the-joint-administrators-of-derby-county-fc

100% behind NP, think he is a breath of fresh air to the club and the person who can take us forward. Bit surprised at the TB outburst, seems something recent happened and quite raw about it, but can't see anyway back for TB, which if he does perform really well at IT then could be a shame. As one of the few who liked TB and believed he has the potential to be a top player if he can get other parts of his game together. But no player or individual is bigger than the club, so if he does not want to be here or does not buy into what NP expects of him, then time to jog on.

That sort of thing spreads really quickly if you don't nip it in the bud and before you know it you have seven or eight players who are convinced that they will never get a game "under this clown".

I had to laugh at around the 14 minute mark into the press conference where there was a scream from outside the press room… I’ll give you a chance to hear what Nige said after?

Post of the day! ?

Joe Williams might be in the squad Saturday ??????

I'm not remotely interested in this world cup / corporate event tbh. That said, if England go well, my interest may improve. At the moment it stinks of brown envelopes, fraud and everything that is wrong with football at the higher levels. So much for 'the working man's game' eh.

In the bottom right, you can see a little man locked out while the inside of the stadium is empty. Rather similar to the gas.

Pring is the player I'd pick out. Strong, takes responsibility and good positional sense. Maybe Scott and Semenyo are more naturally talented, but Pring looks the more comfortable Championship standard at this point IMO

I don't read it as TB being lazy or disinterested. More that he thinks he should be playing, only wants to play in his 'best' position, and whines about being left out. Not good for team spirit and a big contrast with Scott who Nige praised for being willing to play wherever the team needs him most. Ty seems to be a bit of a me-me-me whinger was my take on his comments.

The latest from the EFL - Derby County update - News - EFL Official Website - further useful information on 1 February deadline ... and breathe ... During the past 72 hours, the EFL has met with a number of integral stakeholders including MPs, Government officials, local authorities and the Rams Trust to discuss the ongoing and challenging situation relating to Derby County. In all of these discussions, the League has maintained its position that is seeking to work proactively with all relevant parties to find appropriate and expeditious solutions that will ultimately see the Club out of Administration and thriving under new ownership. However, the EFL is disappointed to note that whilst this dialogue has been taking place there has been, and continues to be, a large amount of misinformation circulating in the public domain which is inaccurate, misleading and a distraction to the immediate objective of understanding how the Club can be funded in order to complete the current season. One such claim made in the past 24 hours is that the EFL has questions to answer regarding a supposed deal reached with Middlesbrough FC linked to Disciplinary action being taken against Derby County for alleged Profitability and Sustainability breaches. These accusations are wholly untrue, serving as an unwelcome diversion to current matters that need swift and decisive action by Derby’s Administrators. This claim was in fact heard and dismissed by an Independent Disciplinary Commission, the judgment of which was published in August 2020. With original charges lodged in January 2020 Derby County’s ownership argued that the agreed stay of proceedings by Middlesbrough FC against the EFL was an 'extraordinary bargain' with the Club bringing forward a series of procedural defences, one of which that EFL charges against Derby County were an ‘Abuse of Process’. After carefully considering all the evidence the Independent Commission rejected all of these allegations and claims entirely (see para 161 onwards here). The League is similarly concerned by recent claims that suggests a broader resolution to ongoing issues is solely dependent on the claims from Middlesbrough and Wycombe Wanderers being resolved, which are merely one part of a complex puzzle. At present, the EFL is not in a position to make a determination as to the status of compensation claims by Middlesbrough and Wycombe under the terms of the EFL’s Articles of Association and/or Insolvency policy, as it could lead to additional action from those already interested parties and the wider membership of Clubs. The role of the EFL is to balance the interests of all 72 EFL Clubs and to make a unilateral decision either way could de-stabilise the competition and be viewed as reckless and unfair to all parties. In an attempt to move this particular matter forward swiftly, the EFL has written to all parties with a proposed solution to negotiate a deal via independent legal mediation, alongside alternative options that would give clarity on the Football Creditors point quickly. The League is currently awaiting a response from all of those involved and it hopes to hear from all parties on the options proposed imminently. Whilst clarity is also required as to the status of the claims from both Middlesbrough and Wycombe Wanderers, it is also critical that progress on two fronts urgently be made: Funding – The Administrator as a matter of urgency needs to clarify how it plans to fund Derby County for the remainder of the season. By the Administrator’s own forecasting, the Club will run out of cash by February, and therefore sourcing funds is of paramount importance to ensure they can compete for the rest of the season. This is not an artificial EFL deadline, but the reality of when we have been informed the money runs out. Preferred Bidder – The EFL needs urgent clarification from the Administrator as to who the preferred bidder is. Without this clarification, no tangible progress can be made into solving the challenges associated with the claims. In addition, further to a meeting with MPs yesterday, the EFL has agreed to take part in any additional collective dialogue between Derby County, Middlesbrough, Wycombe Wanderers, the Administrators, local Derby MPs and other relevant stakeholders that is requested and will progress matters. While ultimately the affairs of Derby County remain solely in the care of the Administrators, the EFL is currently doing everything within its powers and remit to help navigate a solution. The League is exasperated that this has still not been resolved and that we are approaching the end of the transfer window and Administrators have still not provided us any guarantee of funds which are required under the terms of the League’s Insolvency Policy. As a founder Member of the Football League with a proud history, the Club is of huge importance to the East Midlands, our competition and the wider football family and we all hope it can flourish once again in the future as a sustainable member of the EFL. However, any resolution achieved cannot ignore or sidestep EFL Regulations or UK law and any solution needs to be found that satisfies the competition regulations and the terms of the EFL’s Insolvency Policy that was set and agreed by all 72 members, including Derby County. As previously articulated, this a complicated set of circumstances that requires consideration of the EFL’s broader role as the body that oversees 72 member Clubs and not just those Clubs that may be affected at any one time. Any decision taken by the League must be taken on behalf of the interests of all its membership – including Derby County, Middlesbrough, and Wycombe Wanderers - and to ensure the long-term integrity of the League as a collective.

Update from the Administrators at An Update From The Joint Administrators Of Derby County Football Club - Blog - Derby County (dcfc.co.uk) The most interesting bits (to me) are: The implications are that the bids are not sufficient to meet the Football Creditors and other creditors rules. The claims from Middlesbrough and Wycombe, highlighted below. Without reading too much into the comments it would appear that the legal advice received from leading law firms and three QCs is not as dismissive of the merits of the claims as others seem to think they should be, This statement provides a summary of progress to supporters and the media in respect of Derby County Football Club. As we have previously reported, we are dealing with a large number of sensitive issues and felt that issuing reactive statements in response to the recent statements issued by various related parties would at best be unhelpful and also may hinder or prejudice discussions we are having with the same parties. Our perceived lack of recent communication has therefore been both tactical and deliberate. As we have seen from statements issued by others, sometimes these can be misinterpreted and prompt further questions. We are in receipt of a substantial number of messages from supporters, containing questions and supportive comments. We have prioritised our time to focus on the key matters at hand and expect this statement to go some way towards responding to the key questions arising from these messages. We have set out below the key matters which we believe are relevant to ensuring the survival of Derby County Football Club. Whilst we have categorised those key matters, they are, in reality very closely linked. Whilst we have tried to be as clear and open as possible, there are matters, for reasons of confidentiality and sensitivity, which cannot be shared and we hope supporters and the media will understand the reasons for this. 1. Interested Parties Whilst we have communicated previously, there has been a huge amount of interest from parties interested in acquiring the club. We have run a careful and diligent process and we are currently engaged in discussions with three of those parties, all of whom have the credibility to take the club on. Whilst we had hoped to have been able to announce formally our favoured bidder, this has not been possible to date as a result of the issues we will refer to later in this update. These discussions continue this week, and we remain hopeful that we will be able to announce the preferred bidder shortly. Due to the complex nature of these matters, we are unable today to commit to the specific date on which we will do this.We are, however, cognisant of the 1st February deadline as set by the EFL. The key issues for the interested parties we are talking to are: * The uncertainty around the claims from the two football league clubs and what impact that may have on the club going forward in the event these claims are not resolved during the administration. * The uncertainty around the possibility of further sanctions from the EFL in the event the chosen bid does not deliver the financial compensation to pass the EFL rules around payment to both football creditors and other creditors. Please note that the above issues have been subject to numerous discussions with both the EFL and others over the last few months and are extremely complex. They are also very sensitive, and we do not believe it to be helpful to discuss them in any detail in this update. 2. Claims from two Football League Clubs These have been well documented both by us previously and more recently, by others making statements. We do not think it would be helpful, in view of the sensitivity of these matters, to elaborate on the discussions we have been having other than to confirm we are committed to dealing with these claims in the most expeditious manner. They are complex and are heavily disputed. Whilst the two claims have yet to be fully pleaded, we have taken advice from leading law firms and obtained three QC barristers opinions as to the merits of their claims and also the EFL current position. We have highlighted different ways in which we believe these claims can be dealt with and we are in discussions with the EFL in this regard. As referred above, no interested party is willing to commit to acquiring the club without further clarity on these claims and we continue, tirelessly to find a solution to move matters forward. 3. Funding and the EFL position We have maintained cordial and business-like relations with the EFL and are committed to continue with those. They are the regulator, and we understand and respect their rules. They have concerns about the time this process is taking, principally because of point 2 above, and have asked us for evidence that we have the ability to fund the club through to the end of the season in the event we are not able to successfully achieve an exit before then. The EFL have maintained this position throughout and our objective was always that once we had formalised our buyer, that we would work with that buyer to help with funding whilst the formalities of exiting the Administration were dealt with. That remains our intention and indeed discussions with those interested parties as referred above have focused on their commitment to provide that funding. The deadline for evidence of funding is 1st February, at which time the EFL have said that if they do not have firm evidence of funding, they will consider their position in terms of Derby’s ability to fulfil the fixture list. We have provided the EFL with 3 scenarios as to how that funding gap can be bridged and the EFL await further confirmation from us as to which scenario we plan to deliver. This will be dealt with over the next few days. In the interim, the EFL have confirmed that until as such time as they are satisfied with that evidence, they will not allow any new player registrations to take place and this does include player contract extensions. 4. Playing Squad and discussions with Wayne Rooney We have maintained a regular dialogue with Wayne Rooney and indeed met with him on Tuesday this week. We are hugely impressed with his commitment and understanding of the position. We are also hugely impressed with the attitude and performance of the players in this very difficult time. We have explained the current position to Wayne Rooney and have committed to keeping him abreast of our progress. There have been some player exits but our position has always been that we would like to maintain the integrity and quality of the squad as best we can. That is still our intention. We would like to assure everyone linked to the club that we are working tirelessly to achieve a successful outcome and still believe this is possible. We understand the frustrations of the supporters who are desperate for the club to survive and we are doing everything in our power to make this happen. It is our intention to maintain open dialogue with you and will communicate as and when we have meaningful updates.

@Port Said Red congratulations! You have won OTIB and the Internet. Take a bow sir.

So , out of interest- do you feel the same way about your local pub? It may be owned by someone but it belongs to the drinkers? Trouble with this view is about the money- it's always about the money. Colchester , in common with many a business which have a place in a local community, are not exactly flowing with cash or the level of support which makes the business sustainable. Many people want the facility to be there but aren't always willing to support it other than as and when it suits them. I support BCFC but not from my sofa but with hard cash. I dont go looking for basically illegal free streams which deprive our club of desperately needed money and then go bleating on about no money for transfers. When City announce losses of over £30 million in a season ( year) I thank the lord that I don't own the club and I have zero liability for the losses. Fans are great when money is being spent on transfers/trying to get a promotion but turn very quickly if it doesn't work out and the club is in serious debt. Just ask any Derby fan. And whilst I'm on a rant- how difficult is it to pay £5 to OTIB and become a supporter? It's OUR forum after all..... isn't it???

Shut it Lez.

This 100%. Nice old BCFC has been the case for far too long. I dont think Nige is really the authoritative man SL really wants in charge either as he’s clearly too motivated to clear the deadwood and clear the niceness away. Perhaps we are now seeing the green shoots of us falling in line with what pro football is - hard and competitive, not nice and namby pamby like weve been for too long. Keep it up Nige!

Blimey! Just listened to NP's comments. Didn't pull any punches, did he? That was about as damning as anything I've ever heard a City manager say publicly about a player. Sounded pretty terminal, too. Can't see any way back from that, unless the intention is to give him a king-sized boot up the backside, but I imagine that's already been done in private, and probably more than once. What is it with some of these young guys? There is real talent there and the possibility of a very rewarding career ahead of him, and he can't be arsed to get out of bed and put a shift in. Very disappointing, and a terrible waste, but we've seen it before in gifted but unmotivated and under-achieving players. David Noble and JET, to name two obvious examples of blokes who should have been PL regulars. Further back, Gavin Williams was arguably another. Can't fault the decision, though. You don't want to put the effort in, on yer bike. Sends the right message, but it's a loss, for TB as much as the club.

He can stay there as far as I’m concerned!

3-1 defeat. Respectable. I do think the current squad are better than those who got us relegated. Bright future.

I've only scanned some of the comments over social media, wow. IMO Bakinson is Championship standard now, at least he would look that way in the right team. We aren't that yet, and we (or Nige) wants everyone to work hard. Bakinson isn't that player. He has vision , ability and the technical skill, he just doesn't put himself about enough. Listening to Pearson's comments, I would say it was more attitude and how he conducts himself. Pearson said: "Yes. As far as I'm concerned, and I've said it before, if players don't want to be here they can go. "I'm not bothered. He's a player who unfortunately just wants to play on his own terms. It's not something I particularly want so he can go. "I'm not wasting energy on negativity, I don't invest time on that, I'm not just saying it. If you ask people who work with me they'll say exactly the same thing, I don't waste energy on negativity, it drives me mad. He should be a real success in L1, and I really think that could set him up for next year. But maybe he wants someone to do the hard yards for him, or he thinks he can coast a bit. Whatever it is, Nige doesn't like it.

Our ground is set up all wrong, the main home end should be swapped to behind the other goal so it’s next to the away fans. The ground manager won’t let this happen though. It would make for a much better atmosphere. I’ve sat next to away fans at the Ccs in what is unbelievably the family stand, the kids get to hear all sorts of lovely language and references to being Welsh, fortunately my two young ones struggle to comprehend the northern/brummie accents so didn’t pick up on what was being said. Loads of fans who take their kids have complained but it falls on deaf ears. Sure, the odd idiot will get nicked and banned if we swapped the ends, but I dont think think anyone really fancies going down these days for handbags inside the stadium. as noisy as you think you are in the away end, the main contingent of cardiff fans can’t hear you and vice versa….

Bakinson is no big loss. Lacked desire and often looked lazy. Remember the game against Bournemouth when he came on. Strolled around despite the fact we were down to 10 men. Frustrating player- suited to league one. Loved the press conference and the comparison with Alex Scott! Palmer next hopefully.

I well remember Jose Mourinho saying that ‘if you have one rotten apple in the box, pretty soon they’re all rotten’…….

Oh they will. The very same people who were crucifying Nige for playing him when we had a load of injuries will be crucifying him the very first time he has a decent game for Ipswich................

I can only assume that Ethan is a child. Digs always have slightly less oomph when they are spelt incorrectly.

Well said, that man.

No, apparently not. Turns out it was actually an evil EFL vendetta against them. Who knew, eh?

Sorry, been living on the moon for the past couple of years……. have Derby County no longer got the EFL & Championship clubs on strings then?

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/sport/football/bristol-city-efl-andy-davies-6521366 Good news!

Have listened again and there is some discussion of Boro's claim. Points to note: Boro threatened to sue the EFL for failure to rigourously apply the rules. Parry admitted that they were too slow (as many of us have been saying all along). I don't recall Derby fans complaining about the delay at the time, only some of them cheering Morris on for having the EFL on strings.He should perhaps have gone on to say that Morris wanted to drag it out to avoid an earlier points deduction that would have relegated Derby instead of Wycombe but I guess he was being diplomatic. There is no reference to authorising Boro's claim. This makes sense as the EFL is not a party to the dispute so cannot authorise it or not. What is not clear to me is whether the arbitration is in progress. Perhaps it has been held up given Boro's claim that the Administrators had not replied to their letters? On the reform front an independent financial unit is being set up to improve the process. Better late than never. So the EFL is to blame to the extent that that it failed to be tougher earlier but this still seems to fall short of victimising Derby.

The park and ride will only be a 10 minute walk from the stadium, however, which would help. And most residents will live within 3 miles, so the younger/fitter among the fan base are in walking distance. Would be even funnier if it were to happen in a Southern Premier League South match!

The plans for new stand, gym, pitch, sports bar etc etc sound great. I understand one stand will be similar in principle to the Carol Embry suite at FGRs, where it will be two tier, top section behind glass. Certainly what's planned looks great for the local community. Open 7 days a week, sports pitch and gym, electric car power points, sports bar, even allotments etc...all will bring extra revenue to the Club. They are miles off ever being League...however, they are punching big time this season. With games in hand, and a bit of luck they could even make top 2. If a miracle ever did happen...the new proposals with housing would make the club land locked so to speak. With really no further room to expand. Very limited. I guess the new park and ride could be utilised for visiting supporters in future if attendances increased. As with everything these days, parking is the issue. Double yellows on the nearby trading estate. The council doing everything they can to stop street parking. The same happening in near Sodbury. Proposal for is it 750 new homes...yet they want to make Sodbury high st, a car free zone, with no parking. It's full to busting already with local residents cars, and car park generally full each day. It's not practical or feasible.

9,611 attendance at Reading tonight. Back to the old days...

Afternoon again. Finally we have some more clarification on where we seem to be at - even if we don't like the position. As much as I know Mel Morris is to blame and the admin have been less use than the proverbial chocolate teapot the push to get MPs involved and pressure on the EFL is at least pulling all the components into the open. As a fan I'd much rather know the true position than be left wondering. The admin have committed to a statement today - however after reading the MPs updates post a meeting with them this afternoon I can see what's going to be said: "we're screwed if Boro/Wycombe don't drop their claims as player sales wouldn't cover what else we can recoup". Don't shoot the messenger - I know MM could resolve this and am perplexed by the MPs at least not flagging this. The Labour MPs especially I thought would bring this up more. Couple of questions had been directed at me before from a couple of days ago EFL - admitting they authorised Boro to sue us on order that they themselves didn't get sued. In the first hearing the choice of an expert on ground valuation of the ground who was anything but/didn't do their work to sufficient standard. Don't get me wrong - we're the guilty party but examples of things which leave us nervous about EFLs ability related to Derby. Their last statement where they spent however many paragraphs saying they don't have a vendetta was remarkable! Mr P - noticed a few references to deadline of this month for accounts to be restated. There were discussions between us/EFL after this ruling along the lines of we can't restate them as whilst the amortisation policy wasn't in line with what EFL wanted it was from a legal perspective a method which didn't break the law. How that ended up I don't know and I'm not qualified to know, but that was the discussion between Derby/EFL at the time. Again I can't defend MM. I won't. I just want my club not to be liquidated. I want MM to pay and don't understand why more pressure across the board isn't exerted on him but at the minute our best chance appears EFL/Boro/Wycombe.

This is a fallacy the fans like to believe, we are just followers of a team through choice, it doesn't belong to us.

I want Mel Morris to pay…