Football League World
·18 September 2024
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·18 September 2024
The Swede has kept two clean sheets in his first two matches at Pride Park.
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...
Derby County supporters have been treated to an excellent return to life in the Championship, particularly at home.
The Rams have won all three of their matches at Pride Park Stadium in the league this season, scoring five goals and conceding none.
They might have added another strike to their total at DE24 on Saturday had it not been for Ebou Adams conjuring up one of the most bizarre misses in the history of the EFL, but it was only a small blight on what has been a superb few weeks for Paul Warne's side.
Part of the reasoning behind Derby's success has been their new goalkeeper, Jacob Widell Zetterstrom.
The Swede made his league debut against Watford in August, and despite the Rams losing 2-1, it was just the beginning of a fantastic start to life in England.
The 26-year-old was signed for £1.4 million from Swedish club Djurgårdens just before Derby's 1-0 win over Middlesbrough.
He was kept on the bench in the victory, watching his teammate, Josh Vickers, keep out Boro with a string of successive saves.
Although Vickers produced an impressive showing, Zetterstrom has been between the posts ever since, keeping three clean sheets in all competitions.
It has been his form in the league that has particularly impressed Shaun Woodward, Football League World's Derby Fan Pundit, who gave his thoughts on the Rams' new number one.
Shaun told FLW: “Zetterstrom has been absolutely immense. When he first came in, he looked a little bit nervy at times in his first couple of games, to be honest.
“It was understandable in a new league, a new team with a different style of play. But I think he's equipped himself amazingly,” he said.
“He's a beast of a player, a seriously good shot stopper. He’s big, strong and brave. I think he's going to be an absolute asset to Derby.
“He’s at a brilliant age for a goalkeeper, he's only going to get better, so I think he was definitely worth the wait, and he looks like the real deal and could be our new Mart Poom.”
It took potentially longer than many people expected for it to take to bring the 6ft 6in goalkeeper to Pride Park, after his European campaign with his former club continued.
However, it has been well worth the wait to see the impeccable shot-stopper, who has made five saves in each of his last two Championship appearances.
A double save at 1-0 in Saturday's win against Cardiff City proved vital to the result, while he was in fine form to keep the Rams' fixture against Bristol City level before the international break, a game that his team went on to win 3-0.
If Zetterstrom keeps this form going, then he will join the long list of fantastic Derby goalkeepers, although he already looks to be yet another incredibly shrewd signing by Warne.
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