Derby County’s Interim Manager Liam Rosenior is relishing the prospect of getting the 2022/23 League One season up and running this weekend.
Saturday afternoon’s Pride Park Stadium showdown with Oxford United (3pm kick-off) will see the Rams play their first competitive game since Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd completed their purchase of the club at the beginning of this month.
A big crowd is expected as the Rams prepare to play in the third tier of English football for the first time since 1986 and begin a new era in the club’s history.
Derby exited administration, after a long and arduous nine months, as a result of the recent takeover to close the door on one of the most challenging periods in the Rams’ history and look ahead to a more stable future.
Rosenior oversaw Derby’s pre-season preparations, the arrival of 11 new players and several players penning new contracts and he’s now looking forward to getting the season started against Oxford, a side that have been strongly in the race for promotion in recent years.
He sat down with RamsTV to discuss several Rams matters, and provide the latest team news, ahead of the meeting with Karl Robinson’s side.
On The Club’s Summer Journey…
It’s incredible and something that can only happen in football. From where we were a month ago, with everyone so anxious about the future of the club, to where we are today where we’re speaking about football again.
David Clowes and his people put in a huge amount of work to save the football club and everyone has put in an awful lot since as well. The feeling around here is the complete opposite to what it was a month ago, which is incredible.
The spirit and togetherness is still here but now we’re on a sound footing and have to take full advantage of that. I can’t wait for the opening day of the season now. I can tell from training today that the players are really excited and the staff are too for the first game of the new era.
On The New Arrivals…
They have been outstanding and I knew they would be. I know a lot of them and their characters, and it was important for us that they fit into the values of this club. I knew they would acclimatise really quickly and I couldn’t be happier with how they’ve conducted themselves and how they’ve trained.
We’ve given the players a lot of messages over the last few weeks and they’ve taken the information in their stride and they can’t wait for the first game of the season now. I’m really comfortable because I trust them to perform at the highest level they possibly can.
I feel a couple of new faces are needed to get to where we want to be, which I’ve said before. The work that went into the first wave of players coming in took a long time and we’ll be equally diligent in our work to bring in people with the right character, values and mentality.
I won’t bring anyone into the club unless I’m sure they’re right. I don’t want to waste anyone’s time or money, I want to make sure that come 1st September we’ve got a full squad ready to attack this league.
On Fitness And Injuries…
David McGoldrick has a small niggle and won’t be available for the weekend. He wants to play through it but if he aggravates it, he could miss months. I’m not willing to risk losing a player of his quality from the group.
He’s going to be vital this season, but he has to be fully fit. He’s doing his rehabilitation work and has worked really hard but I want to make sure he’s ready for the whole campaign and not just the start of it.
Krystian Bielik has had an issue with his knee and we’ve had to take our time with him and move him step by step.
On The Challenge Of League One…
It’ll be really difficult and it makes me anxious when people think we’ll walk this league. There are a lot of very good teams, including Oxford United. Every match away from home will be tough and we have to be able to grind out games and win in different ways.
I want to see us really focus on ourselves in terms of the process and how we’ll play - that’s how you get consistent success, regardless of division. By focusing on performances, hopefully you’ll bring results but by no means will this be an easy season.
A lot of big, big clubs are in this league who have big ambitions. The most important things, for me, are no complacency and consistency of performance.
On Target Setting…
I haven’t set any targets for the players yet because we haven’t got a full squad in. The target has to be to win the game that we’re playing, that’s the most important thing. I want us to be up there challenging and I think this club should be.
There are high expectations and high demand, which is what I want, but there is a process that takes time. Sheffield Wednesday were in mid-table early on last season but pushed on in the second half of the campaign and were a goal away from the Play-Off Final. It’s not just about the first 10 games, it’s a 46-game season and a lot can happen.
On The Derby County Fans…
I don’t have any words for the supporters. Without them this club wouldn’t exist, just look at the fans’ march in January before the Birmingham City game.
Their support gave us an extra 10 points last season, especially at home. On the road they were brilliant, but look at our home wins against AFC Bournemouth, Fulham and Sheffield United - the atmosphere from the crowd gave us that extra five percent to win the games.
I can only thank them from the bottom of my heart for sticking with us last year and it’s my job to give them something to shout about this year. Keeping that atmosphere will give us that extra push to get us to where we want to be again.