Derby County supporters will be surprised at Andre Wisdom's career path since Rams exit: View | OneFootball

The right-back had two spells with the Rams, before leaving in 2021.

Derby County have long been a club that has possessed talented right-backs, with the likes of Cyrus Christie, Jayden Bogle, and Nathan Byrne all providing the Rams with a solid option defensively on the right flank over the last 10 years.

However, perhaps the best player to operate in the position since the start of the 2013/14 season is Andre Wisdom.

The now 31-year-old joined Derby on loan from Liverpool 11 years ago and was excellent, helping the team to the Championship Play-Off final. Despite fans yearning for his return in the summer, he instead went to West Bromwich Albion, before joining Norwich City and RB Salzburg in the next two years.

Wisdom eventually did return to Pride Park, making the permanent switch to the Rams for £4.5 million in July 2017. He made another 107 appearances in black-and-white before he left in 2021, having played 38 times while on loan.

However, supporters may be surprised to see where their former number two is playing his football now, three years after his contract expired.

The end of Wisdom's time at Derby was detrimental to his career

Bogle's rise up to the first team in 2018/19 meant that Wisdom's gametime lessened following his first season back in the East Midlands.

The latter played 34 games in the 2017/18 campaign but a struggle for fitness in the next two years saw him involved in just 33 matches over the course of those seasons.

Nevertheless, following Bogle's sale to Sheffield United, Wisdom was once again a key component of the Derby team. However, in June 2020, the former Liverpool defender was attacked in Merseyside, stabbed in the head and buttocks by an armed gang.

On the Beautiful Game Podcast, he explained what happened: "I was at a place where I shouldn't have been - at a party.

"But I think that time of year, as it was lockdown, I was quite eager to get out outside a bit without doing too much.

"When I was leaving, there were like five guys with balaclavas, knives, and they said 'give me your watch'. I said 'no' so what else happens, we start fighting and, yeah, that was it. I drove home after the incident, and then I realised I've been stabbed multiple times."

Wisdom continued: "I drove home by myself. Loads of people came out the party after five minutes of wrestling, and they've ran off.

"I'm covered in blood in the street, and I'm just like 'f***'s sake,' gone home and rang the ambulance from my house."

Although he recovered to take part in the following season, Wisdom was never the same player at Derby, despite scoring his first-ever league goal against Wycombe Wanderers in February 2021, operating at centre-back alongside Matt Clarke.

Wisdom's career has take a bizarre twist

The 31-year-old was released by the Rams at the end of the 2020/21 campaign after he was not offered a new contract following the expiration of his previous deal.

He spent time on trial at Birmingham City, playing for the club's U21s side. Blues were not the only club to take the old-school defender on for a period of time. Sheffield United let him train with the squad in 2022, while Portsmouth also gave Wisdom the opportunity to impress ahead of the 2022/23 campaign.

However, he struggled to maintain the levels that he had once shown while at Derby and he continued to be without a club.

The summer of 2023 marked the second year of Wisdom being a free agent but 12 months ago, he was finally offered the chance to make his way back into the game - this time in non league.

He joined Warrington Town in September 2023 following their promotion from the Northern Premier League Premier Division to the National League North. The Leeds-born defender made 34 appearances during his time at Cantilever Park, playing at both right and centre-back.

His performances for the Yellows earned him a move back into professional football, signing for League of Ireland club Derry City in August, where he started his first three games and has already begun to look like his usual self.

Rams fans may be surprised to see Wisdom playing at the level he currently is and has done as recently as last year, especially considering the impact he made on the club during his two spells there.

However, they will also be glad to see him back doing what he loves to do after a few tough years.