"Building something special": John Eustace sends Derby County rallying cry amid injury crisis revelation | OneFootball

Derby County currently have six players out of action which could spell danger for manager John Eustace.

Derby County boss John Eustace is remaining positive despite issuing a further blow on the Rams' injury front following their 1-1 draw with Bristol City.

The start to the 2025/26 campaign has been met with excitement and expectation for Derby County after a busy transfer window this summer, by bringing in the likes of Carlton Morris, Bobby Clark, and Patrick Agyemang, just to name a few.

However, three games down and only one point on the board is not the start Rams boss John Eustace had hoped for early on this season.

Derby earned themselves a point, with a hard-fought 1-1 draw at Pride Park against Bristol City on Friday night, thanks to a late equaliser from Morris to keep the County faithful on board.

Despite performance levels being rather up-and-down for the club up to this point, a key reason for this is the Rams' injury crisis.

Having six players sidelined due to injury, Eustace has been unable to field a consistent starting XI, but looks to get back on track with a busy schedule involving midweek games on the horizon.

John Eustace reveals Derby County injury crisis isn't going to improve any time soon

Even being in the month of August, having just got underway for the 2025/26 season, Derby County have been bitterly unlucky as injuries have been a common theme in the first few gameweeks.

It has been reported via Derbyshire Live that Eustace has had to adapt to the ongoing crisis, with notable names not being match-fit.

The list includes Curtis Nelson and Corey Blackett-Taylor, who look to be out of action for some time. New men, Agyemang and Owen Beck, remain out of the squad, as well as Kane Wilson and Sondre Langas, who should be returning to action in the coming weeks.

However, with the season now in full flow, Derby have a couple of difficult fixtures on their hands with a second-round EFL Cup tie against Premier League outfit Burnley on Tuesday night, followed by an away trip to Portman Road where they will face Ipswich Town next weekend.

In Derby County's 1-1 draw at home to Bristol City, injuries to key men handed opportunities to new signings Rhian Brewster and Clark. With the 20-year-old Clark joining on loan from Red Bull Salzburg, his services in the midfield could prove vital in the coming weeks as he looked lively when coming on off the bench.

As for Brewster, he may play a key role for Eustace in Derby's upcoming fixtures as he says the ex-Sheffield United man is hungry to prove a point to the Derby fans and the rest of the Championship.

On the ex-Sheffield United man, Eustace said: "He's not had any minutes at all except for 45 minutes against Oxford under 21s on Tuesday for the last two months.

"He's a boy of 25 years of age, who had a big money move at a very young age. He's had a couple of very bad injuries.

"Last year he played 39 appearances, which is great but he's come here with a point to prove, to play in front of a crowd of 30,000 every week. He can't wait to prove some people wrong, but also to play well for the football club."

John Eustace remains positive despite Derby's injury worries

A depleted squad has certainly meant that Eustace has an uphill battle for the forthcoming games, but the Rams boss has stressed the importance of utilising his squad and feels positive about the players available to him as he spoke to Derbyshire Live.

Eustace said, "There won't be anyone who we can call on for the next two games, who haven't been in the squad now.

"Over the next couple of games, though, we can get more minutes into the likes of Brewster, Bobby Clark, players like that. I thought Dion Sanderson was better again."

He went on to say, "We have to put a lot of things into perspective.

"When people are saying you've had a poor start and what not - yes, it's not the start we wanted, but it's how you finish that matters.