"He has stagnated" - Derby County player exit welcomed as Championship club swoop | OneFootball

FLW's Derby County fan pundit has no issue with Louie Sibley leaving to join Oxford United this summer.

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…

Louie Sibley's long association with Derby County is over following the expiration of his deal with the club, as he has joined Oxford United on a long-term deal.

Despite promotion, Sibley was an individual who faced an uncertain future. The 22-year-old attacking midfielder and sometimes left wing-back has been with the Rams since he was a boy, graduating from the club's academy system into the first-team in 2020.

Sibley has come through the ranks at Derby, and has gone on to make over 150 appearances for the club, but his contract expired this week, even though the Rams revealed a few weeks ago that they remained in talks with Sibley over a new deal.

They were not the only interested party, though. He had offers from elsewhere, including Rotherham United, which always had the potential to convince him to take his talents somewhere else after playing more of a rotational role last season in League One.

It was then revealed via a report from Football Insider's Pete O'Rourke, that fellow Championship new-boys Oxford were winning the race to strike a free transfer deal for Sibley.

Derby County and Louie Sibley parting ways is best for all parties

After securing promotion with his boyhood club - the club that he has been with for most of his life - he has decided that now is the time to move on from Pride Park to join Oxford; but could that come back to haunt the club next season?

According to FLW's Derby County fan pundit Shaun Woodward, the time was right to part ways.

Shaun told FLW: "I think it was time for Louie Sibley to move on.

"For someone so young, he's been a good servant to Derby.

"He's played a hell of a lot of games for us and he's obviously a Derby boy, so it hurts when one of your own leaves. "But he has stagnated at Derby over the last couple of years. He never really pushed on to be the player we really thought we were going to have when he first burst onto the season with that cracker against Blackburn and that hat-trick against Millwall. "It's not necessarily his fault. He's been played in a lot of different positions over the years. He's never really settled on a position. "He tended to have a good couple of appearances and then fade away. He'd then have a spell out of the team and come on and have a good cameo role, but then come back in the team as very much a bit-part player. "His best spell was probably last season, where he played left wing-back, but I can't see him holding that down in the Championship, so he probably felt like it was the right time for a fresh start for him. "I wish him all the best, and I think most Derby fans will always have a soft spot for Louie Sibley, given that he is one of our own.

"I do think, for both parties, it was the right move for him to move on. I hope he has a great career at Oxford. They've got themselves a good little player there."

Oxford United may have landed a coup in Louie Sibley

Initially a central or attacking midfielder, Sibley spent a lot of last season playing as a left-wing back and Oxford could well find themselves needing to take full advantage of that versatility as the season goes on.

Sibley could be a major plus point towards any ambitions they have of not only remaining as a Championship outfit come next May, but also of sustaining themselves in the division for years to come.

He's been inconsistent throughout his career, but at 22, he's only bound to improve and that's a challenge that Liam Manning will relish by helping find Sibley a settled role and position in the team.

Sibley was held in incredibly high regard after breaking through to the Derby first-team following his exploits for the club's esteemed youth setup, and for good reason too, so it could be one that comes back to bite them down the line if he kicks on in terms of his development once again.