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Derby County have an exciting summer ahead of them, and they will be hoping that the first of their signings makes their way through the door at Pride Park before the end of June.
Investment is on the horizon in the East Midlands, and CEO Stephen Pearce is preparing for a busy transfer window. However, there will also be departures as the Rams make space for new faces.
It’s been six years since Derby broke their transfer record, but this more careful way of spending over the course of the last few years since administration has served them well, and Eustace has a strong core of the squad ready to build from.
Nevertheless, there will be a desire to see the Rams bring funds in and EFL Analysis has taken a look at the East Midlands outfit’s five biggest sales in history.
Derby County’s five most expensive sales
5. Will Hughes – Watford
Will Hughes came through Derby’s academy and made his debut for the club while he was just 16-years-old under the guidance of Nigel Clough.
Hughes went on to make 187 appearances for the Rams, coming close to promotion to the Premier League in 2014 as he helped take his side to the Championship play-off final. However, the club were never able to take that next step during his time at Pride Park.
The midfielder joined Watford in the summer of 2017 for a fee that The Guardian reported to be around the £8m mark before he moved to Crystal Palace in 2021 – winning the FA Cup with the Eagles in May.
4. Eiran Cashin – Brighton & Hove Albion
The most recent addition on this list, Eiran Cashin only left Derby in the January transfer window as he joined top flight outfit Brighton & Hove Albion for £9m, as per BBC Sport.
However, it has not been the easiest of rides for the centre-back so far, and his minutes have been severely limited. The Seagulls have now added more defenders to their squad, and the 24-year-old has found himself lower down the pecking order.
Cashin was excellent for the Rams after making his debut under Wayne Rooney in 2021, and he quickly became an established star at Pride Park before departing.
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3. Jeff Hendrick – Burnley
Just like Cashin and Hughes, Jeff Hendrick came through the academy at Derby and he made his name in DE24 over the course of five years between 2011 and 2016.
The ex-Republic of Ireland international made 262 appearances, scoring 27 goals and registering 20 assists before leaving for Burnley on deadline day in the 2016 summer transfer window for a then club-record £10.5m, as reported by BBC Sport.
The 33-year-old returned to Derby in March 2025 as a free agent, but he failed to make an appearance and Hendrick is now a free agent after leaving the Rams for the second time.
2. Tom Ince – Huddersfield Town
Tom Ince has had a marmite career, and with the lows have come some incredible highs, and his time at Pride Park was certainly the latter.
The winger was superb for Derby after joining on loan in January 2015, as he replaced Jordon Ibe, who called Steve McClaren his best ever manager.
Ince went on to spend the next two-and-a-half years with the Rams before joining Huddersfield Town following their promotion to the Premier League. The Terriers smashed their transfer record for the former Liverpool youngster; spending around £11m on him, according to The Mirror.
1. Matej Vydra – Burnley
The highest transfer fee that Derby have ever received came in the summer of 2018 as Matej Vydra said goodbye to Pride Park as he moved to Burnley for £11m, as per the Daily Mail.
The Czech forward had just won the Championship Golden Boot the season prior, scoring 21 goals as the Rams finished 6th before they were beaten by Fulham in the semi-finals over two legs.
He was never able to recreate his form in the second tier with the Clarets, and it was Derby who were the more successful side out of the deal. Nevertheless, Vydra’s goalscoring form in black-and-white was sensational in 2017/18 and without him they would not have finished in the top six.