John Eustace identifies one key Derby County positive despite Preston North End defeat

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It’s been a really tough start to the season for Derby County, and their problems were compounded by Preston North End on Saturday afternoon as they were beaten 1-0 at Pride Park.

Alfie Devine’s deflected effort nestled beautifully into the top corner for the visitors just 29 minutes into the clash, leaving the Rams languishing just above the relegation zone after six games.

The home side started slowly, and they were punished by Paul Heckingbottom’s side, who moved up to fifth with the victory and supporters of the Lilywhites have been treated to an excellent start to the campaign.

Nevertheless, for Derby, it was more of the same at home in 2025/26, with just one point taken from three matches in DE24 and John Eustace was left frustrated, yet there was one shining light.

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Patrick Agyemang shines as John Eustace vents about Derby County’s first half efforts

It was a Saturday to forget for the Rams, and simply, they were not a threat in the first 45 minutes as Preston were allowed time in possession, with the home side resorting to a long ball tactic that did not serve them well.

However, there was one positive for Derby, and that was the introduction of Patrick Agyemang at half-time, with the USA striker causing issues for the Lilywhites’ defence, with Eustace singing his praises.

He said (via: Derbyshire Live): “I thought the first half was nowhere near good enough and we deservedly came in 1-0 down. But in the second half, I thought we were great, and the change of shape certainly helped.

“The performance of Patrick Agyemang was very good. Coming on, you can see he’s got huge potential. He’s getting fitter and fitter, so to give him the 45 minutes and the way he performed was great.

“I think there are lots of positives to take out of the second half. We’re still learning about each other as a group. It was disappointing to lose the game, but I felt we did enough to at least get a point.”

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Patrick Agyemang is quickly making himself a fans’ favourite

After joining Derby for £5.8m from Charlotte in the summer, there has been pressure on Agyemang to hit the ground running, with a hernia issue meaning that his season has only just started.

However, his introduction at the break was met with excitement from supporters and he picked up from where he left off against West Brom, causing multiple issues for the Preston defence.

Agyemang worked the space to fire in an effort on Daniel Iversen’s goal in the 65th minute, but his shot was saved.

The USA international could have been an option to start the game, and it seems incredibly likely that he will feature from the off next weekend against Wrexham as Derby look to make it back-to-back away victories.