Derby County Urged To Pip Leeds United To Playmaker Signing

Derby County have joined the race for former Nottingham Forest playmaker Ateef Konate this summer and one EFL pundit believes Pride Park is the perfect place for him to play regular first-team football.

Following a 2-0 win over Carlisle United back in April on the final day of the 2023/24 campaign, the Rams earned promotion to the Championship, pipping the likes of Bolton Wanderers and Peterborough United to second place who threatened to take their spot in the automatics throughout the season.

However, work has now been taking place off the pitch to strengthen the squad and head coach Paul Warne will undoubtedly be grinding hard with the recruitment department to identify players to sign who can help the team consolidate in a stronger division, albeit with a lesser budget than the majority of clubs in England’s second tier.

This past week, AfricaFoot released a report, claiming that Derby County were keeping tabs on Konate who has just been released by Premier League side and bitter rivals Nottingham Forest after four years with the club, having failed to make a single appearance in the top-flight. The outlet have reported that Derby are joined by Leeds United, Sunderland League One side Huddersfield Town and clubs in Belgium for the French playmaker’s signature.

While the Rams face stiff competition for the 23-year-old, Sheffield Wednesday legend Carlton Palmer has stated that Pride Park is the perfect place for Konate to play his football next season in a recent interview with Football League World [quotes via Derby County News]:

“He needs to be playing football,” Palmer said.

“It’s looking at a club where he’s going to be given the opportunity to play football.

“Derby are having a complete re-shuffle with their playing squad. We’ve seen how Sunderland are with young players, but they’re yet to have a manager in place.

“Leeds United will be pushing for promotion next season, and they’re in need of a front player. Where would he fit in?

“I think Derby might be the ideal place for Ateef, it’s just down the road from Nottingham and Paul Warne works with young players and knows how to get the best out of them, so I think that would be a good move for him.”

Writer’s View

Leeds United have remained in the Championship so will be looking for players to sign for relatively low fees, or potentially for nothing, who have a high ceiling. Konate fits under this bracket, but the Frenchman likely won’t be a regular first-team player at Elland Road.

However, Derby County could be a good option for him. Warne has excelled during his time in Derbyshire with young players and is in the market for someone with more creative prowess this summer. Konate is likely to get consistent game-time with the Rams compared to Leeds, as Palmer has predicted.