Paul Heckingbottom feared John Eustace impact in 2022, now his ‘fingerprints’ are clear to see at Derby County

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John Eustace has been at the heart of one of the biggest stories in the Championship this season, but the end of that story is still to be written.

After leaving Blackburn Rovers, then in the play-off places, to join relegation-threatened Derby County, many questioned John Eustace’s decision.

Defeats in his first three games and no goals scored appeared to be vindication for the doubters, but three huge wins since have silenced the critics emphatically.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
20	Hull CityHull City	39	10	11	18	39	48	-9	41
21	CardiffCardiff	39	9	13	17	43	63	-20	40
22	DerbyDerby	38	10	8	20	40	51	-11	38
23	LutonLuton	39	10	8	21	35	60	-25	38
24	PlymouthPlymouth	39	7	13	19	40	77	-37	34

As the Championship relegation battle intensifies in the final run-in, Derby now have a great chance of escaping the drop zone. A win against Preston North End on Wednesday night would be enough to lift the Rams out of the bottom three ahead of the weekend.

• READ MORE: Derby County fans all ask the same question as new signing suggests John Eustace problem

Paul Heckingbottom spotted John Eustace’s good work at Birmingham

It’ll be a stern test for Eustace, with every game from here until the end of the season essentially carrying the magnitude of a cup final.

But, it is his opposite number, Paul Heckingbottom, who may be the most nervous going into the game.

Looking back at Heckingbottom’s comments from 2022, when his Sheffield United team were preparing to face Eustace’s Birmingham City, it’s clear the Preston boss admired the work Eustace is capable of.

At the time, he said (via Yorkshire Live): “They have kept clean sheets and been really tough to break down. I think we will have to be patient and be really switched on to their counter attacks and be prepared for a really tough game.

“He [Eustace] has got the experience in terms of coaching, it’s not like he’s come straight out of playing and taken over. I would have thought in terms of the grass, the training and the games he would be very comfortable there because it’s what he has done for a long time.

“The management side of it may be a bit different. I think the structure of the club has changed a lot and I would have thought everyone is clear on what their roles are and are going in the same direction.

“It is a good opportunity for John and he has got his fingerprints on the team now. Looking at the last three games and the organisation point of view that’s done on the training ground, that’s the coaching.”

That game, in October 2022, ended in a 1-1 draw between Birmingham and Sheffield United.

• READ MORE: How much money Preston North End have earned from sensational FA Cup run and what they’ll make if they beat Aston Villa

John Eustace is doing exactly the same at Derby County now

While supercomputer predictions claim Derby are going down, there is far more optimism around the club now, and that’s largely down to the tweaks Eustace has made since arriving.

Eustace has breathed fresh life into the Rams and brought a slightly different approach to Paul Warne before him, which seems to have resonated with the players.

Just like Heckingbottom said in 2022, Eustace has got this Derby team looking far more organised at the back, and there appears to be more attacking intensity, too.

Whether his work will be enough to rescue Derby or not remains to be seen, but he’s given them a fighting chance that they didn’t have at the start of the year, that’s for sure.