Derby County struck gold after beating Cardiff City and Leeds United to Coventry City star: View | OneFootball

The defender made 356 appearances in seven years for the Rams.

Richard Keogh had been a stalwart of the EFL for six years by the time he made the move to Coventry City, yet it was his transfer to Derby County that truly showed off his ability.

After starting his career at Stoke City, Keogh moved on to Bristol City after just one full season in senior football in 2005.

His three years in Bristol were filled mostly with loan deals, spending time at Wycombe Wanderers, Huddersfield Town, Cheltenham Town, and Carlisle United. The latter of which signed the then 22-year-old on a permanent deal, where he would ply his trade for the next two seasons.

Keogh attracted the attention of Coventry during his time in Cumbria, heading to the Midlands in 2010, going on to make 95 appearances in all competitions at the Ricoh Arena.

His form for the Sky Blues attracted interest from multiple clubs, with Cardiff City, Leeds United, and Derby all reportedly battling it out to secure the signature of the centre-back.

Becoming a Ram and creating a legacy

With Coventry's relegation to League One confirmed at the end of the 2011/12 season, Championship clubs started to circle round the Sky Blues' two-time Player of the Season.

Cardiff refused to pay the reported £12,000 a week that Keogh was commanding, while Leeds also had an interest under Neil Warnock. Speaking to The Athletic, the now-retired defender said: "Leeds were potentially about to be taken over, and Neil (Warnock) told me he needed a bit more time.

"I told Leeds that if they had a bid accepted then I’d talk to them."

A bid never arrived from Yorkshire and so it was the Rams who won out in signing Keogh for a fee of over £1 million, a decision that proved to be a perfect match for both player and club.

After an excellent first season in black-and-white, in which he won The Jack Stamps Trophy (Derby's Player of the Season), Keogh pushed on and helped the team to their first play-off final since relegation from the Premier League in 2007/08.

However, it was not to be at Wembley in 2014, as a last-minute Keogh mistake allowed Bobby Zamora the chance to send QPR to the top flight with virtually the last kick of the game.

The Rams reached the Championship Play-Offs three more times in the next five seasons, with the ex-Republic of Ireland international playing in all but nine of Derby's next 230 league games after their defeat to QPR.

He once again won the Rams' Player of the Year award in 2015/16, cementing his place as one of the club's most consistent and greatest players in the 21st century. But, success on the pitch struggled to follow, with Derby failing in all of their promotion pushes.

With 356 appearances, Keogh has more than club legends such as Alan Hinton, Colin Boulton, and John O'Hare - yet it was his controversial departure that will be most infamously remembered.

One night that changed everything

Derby started the 2019/20 season poorly by their standards and sat 18th after winning just one of their first eight matches.

A 90th-minute equaliser against Leeds looked to set the Rams back on their way to recover from such an awful opening two months. However, it proved to be the last match of Keogh's Derby career.

Three days after the 1-1 draw at Elland Road, Derby players spent the day bonding as a team. But, a car crash involving Tom Lawrence and Mason Bennett at the end of the night sent shockwaves through the club.

Both players, while uninjured, were charged and later pleaded guilty to drink-driving. However, club captain Keogh suffered a knee injury that saw him out of action for a year after being a passenger in Lawrence's car.

Keogh himself was sacked for his role in the evening's events in October 2019 but after a court hearing, he was awarded with a £2.3 million payout from Derby for wrongful dismissal.

He announced his retirement from football last month, after spending the last four years at six different clubs, including Blackpool, Huddersfield, and a promotion-winning season at Ipswich Town in 2022/23.

After seven years at Derby, and 356 appearances, Keogh is undoubtedly a modern legend at Pride Park and will be the club he is forever associated with. His unceremonious exit may have left a sour taste in the mouths of supporters, but his on-field achievements speak for themselves.