Why every Derby County fan surely shares Eiran Cashin dream after Brighton update | OneFootball

Brighton & Hove Albion have confirmed that they intend to loan central defender Eiran Cashin out next season, and this should excite Derby fans.

Brighton & Hove Albion have confirmed their intention to loan central defender Eiran Cashin out for the 2025-26 season, and the supporters of one club in particular should be particularly excited about this news.

Derby County had a poor 2024-25 season, only avoiding relegation to League One on the last weekend of the season, but one of the high points was the form of Eiran Cashin, who has an extensive history with the club, prior to his big-money move to the south coast in the January transfer window.

The Derby head coach, John Eustace, will be anxious to avoid a repeat of last season's close shave with relegation, and Cashin would be an ideal addition to his team ahead of the new season.

Of course, the elephant in the room will be Cashin having the pick of the Championship if he's heading out on loan, but Derby have the emotional advantage in any race to sign him.

Brighton confirmation of Cashin loan availability will be of particular interest to Derby

There is no doubt that the news of Cashin's availability will be music to the ears of Derby fans, because this is a player who already has an extensive and impressive history with their club.

Cashin signed for Brighton from Derby at the end of the January 2025 transfer window for a fee that was reported to be around £9 million, having already made 126 League appearances for Derby after signing a professional contract with them in 2020.

But Cashin's first-team opportunities at the Amex turned out to be very limited indeed. He made just two Premier League appearances for them throughout the second half of the 2024-25 season, an 18-minute cameo in their 3-0 home defeat against Aston Villa in April, and a one-minute appearance for them against Brentford later in the same month, and the club have now decided that he will benefit from another year learning his trade elsewhere.

Cashin had been a Brighton target for a couple of years by the time they signed him

Cashin enjoyed an excellent start to his professional career, with a seamless transition from the Derby academy into the first team, all the more so after converting from a midfielder into a central defender.

Brighton were known to be interested in him as long ago as the summer of 2023, but Derby's manager at the time, Paul Warne, confirmed that the bids - which were understood at the time to be in the region of £3 million - didn't meet their valuation for the player.

With no transfer having been agreed, he went on to have an outstanding 2023-24 season with the Rams as they were promoted back to the Championship after an absence of two seasons. He was Derby's Young Player of the Year in both 2022-23 and 2023-24, and was included in both the PFA and the EFL's Team of the Year for the 2023-24 season.

Considering his history with the Rams, there is always a chance that he could be returning to Pride Park for the 2025-26 season, if the Rams can pull on his heartstrings. Cashin became a beloved player among Derby fans during his previous time with the club, and a move back to the East Midlands could work out brilliantly for all parties concerned.