Ex-Nottingham Forest man Michael Dawson reacts when asked if he’d ever sign for Derby County | OneFootball

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Football League World

·30 July 2021

Ex-Nottingham Forest man Michael Dawson reacts when asked if he’d ever sign for Derby County

Article image:Ex-Nottingham Forest man Michael Dawson reacts when asked if he’d ever sign for Derby County

Former Nottingham Forest centre-back Michael Dawson has revealed there’s no chance of him signing for the East Midlands side’s arch-rivals Derby County in this transfer window, speaking on talkSPORT.

37-year-old Dawson was released by Chris Hughton’s side this summer after spending three years at the City Ground and made 32 appearances in all competitions for them during his second spell at the club.


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He failed to appear at all during the 2020/21 campaign but is still a fan favourite at Forest after starting his career there before moving on to Tottenham Hotspur – and with this – has promised never to sign for rivals Derby County despite their centre-back shortage at this present moment.

Quiz: What was the score the last time Nottingham Forest played at each of these 24 stadiums?

1 of 24

Anfield?

5-1 W

5-1 L

3-1 W

3-1L

Although Curtis Davies and Andre Wisdom are still training with the Rams and are set to be offered fresh terms at Pride Park with their previous deals expiring in the summer, these deals are yet to get over the line.

With this, manager Wayne Rooney faces the prospect of starting the season without a senior centre-back if no one comes in before their league opener against Huddersfield Town next Saturday.

Former England international Phil Jagielka is also training with the Rams, but it is currently unclear whether he will sign on with the Championship side after officially leaving Sheffield United at the start of this month.

However, one experienced centre-back who definitely won’t be joining Rooney’s side is Michael Dawson, who was speaking about the possibility of joining the club with Alan Brazil and Jamie O’Hara on talkSPORT yesterday morning.

He said: “I’ve followed Forest from the age of nine.

“If I went into pre-season now, I’d probably miss four weeks, even though I’ve been doing a little bit myself.

“To go to Derby, I couldn’t go over that side of the Trent, being a Forest fan from a young age, I’d get slaughtered!”

And when Brazil went on to ask whether he would do it for £1m up front, Dawson replied: “No chance. No chance.”

The Verdict:

This is what you call loyalty! In their current state, Dawson would be a decent signing for Derby if (and it’s a big if) he can stay fit, especially if Jagielka opts against this move.

However, Rooney’s squad depth is already thin as it is and considering Derby are only being able to bring in four players at the moment, it would probably be a waste of a spot to recruit him with other areas to address.

Curtis Davies and Andre Wisdom will continue to be a good option for the Championship outfit if they can put pen to paper on new deals at Pride Park shortly – and with the likes of trialists Ravel Morrison and Sone Aluko impressing in pre-season – their squad may be full up by the time the Manchester United legend thinks about a move for another central defender.

Dawson has been a great centre-back for multiple clubs though, so it will be interesting to see whether he gets another Championship move, has to drop down a tier or two to get regular playing time or just decides to call it a day and moves into another role in the sport.

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