shannon2007

August - September 2010

With the World Cup in the bag, Clough decided to step down as national boss after refusing a knighthood. 'That old bitch can stick her sword up her arse' he commented. With that out of the way, he could now concentrate on bringing more success to Derby, starting with a an excellent 3-0 Community Shield triumph over Champions Arsenal.

The League started with wins over Crystal Palace (2-0) and West Brom (3-0), with a creditable 0-0 draw in London against Arsenal in between. A 2-0 reversal at Everton didnt seem to damage morale, as Manchester City and Norwich were disposed of, and an excellent 1-0 win in Newcastle was achieved to leave Derby 3rd behind on 16 points with Liverpool, with Arsenal leading on 20 points but having played a game more.

The UEFA Cup 1st round saw Derby travel to Poland to play Legia. James McFadden continued his inspirational start at the club as he banged in four goals, Rickets got a 5th and the tie was over. In the second leg, a few players were rested, and Melli got the only goal on his competitive debut to send Derby to the group stage. The draw sees them in with Esbjerg, Sochaux, Besiktas and Sampdoria and it has to be believed that they should sail through to the knock out stages.

shannon2007

October - November 2010

In the League, things were still going well, with new signing McFadden on fabulous form. Chelsea, Middlesbrough and Charlton were defeated before the UEFA group stages got underway woth a trip Turkey to face Besiktas. Although on paper this was a group Derby should come through with ease, it doesnt always work out that way. McFadden and Meira though got the goals that got Clough's side off to a flying start.

A 1-0 win over Tottenham was followed by a weakened side overcoming Crystal Palace in the League Cup by 2-0. A 0-0 draw at Wolves was a blow, and a 1-1 draw at home Sampdoria in the UEFA wasnt the greatest of results. The next two league matches though were crucial as Liverpool were seen off by 3-1 at home and then a great 2-1 win was achieved at Old Trafford and despite a poor 1-1 draw with Villa, Derby sit top after 15 games but with unbeaten Arsenal breathing right down their necks.

In the League Cup, Everton were disposed by 2-0, and in UEFA a 4-0 win over Esbjerg sees Derby through with a game to spare. There is still a long way to go, but its so far so good for Cloughs side.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">| Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Derby | | 15 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 23 | 7 | +16 | 36 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Arsenal | | 15 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 28 | 6 | +22 | 35 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Chelsea | | 15 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 22 | 15 | +7 | 27 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Liverpool | | 15 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 30 | 21 | +9 | 26 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Southampton | | 15 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 31 | 24 | +7 | 25 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Man Utd | | 15 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 21 | 16 | +5 | 24 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Everton | | 15 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 16 | 12 | +4 | 24 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Aston Villa | | 15 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 20 | 16 | +4 | 22 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Man City | | 15 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 18 | 14 | +4 | 21 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Newcastle | | 15 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 15 | 14 | +1 | 21 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 11th | | Q.P.R. | | 15 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 14 | 17 | -3 | 20 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 12th | | Fulham | | 15 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 14 | 16 | -2 | 19 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 13th | | West Brom | | 15 | 5 | 2 | 8 | 11 | 21 | -10 | 17 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 14th | | Charlton | | 15 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 16 | 19 | -3 | 15 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 15th | | Crystal Palace | | 15 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 9 | 14 | -5 | 15 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 16th | | Middlesbrough | | 15 | 4 | 2 | 9 | 18 | 22 | -4 | 14 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 17th | | Wolves | | 15 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 11 | 24 | -13 | 13 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 18th | | Tottenham | | 15 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 10 | 23 | -13 | 12 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 19th | | Norwich | | 15 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 16 | 25 | -9 | 11 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 20th | | Bolton | | 15 | 2 | 4 | 9 | 8 | 25 | -17 | 10 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

retired_bbcarr

congratulations (i think) on the world cup triumph. and things are looking good in the new season. heading for the premiership and uefa double :thup:

shannon2007

Thanks Terk

-----------------------------------------
December 2010 - January 2011

The final UEFA Cup groups match saw Derby ease to a 2-0 win over Sochaux to top the group. The knock out stage sees Clough's men face Austrian's GAK and if they come through that as expected, they will play either Tottenham or Monaco.

Back in the League the wins kept coming, and then in the last game of the year, Arsenal came to Pride Park for the game of the season. With a slender lead at the top, a win here would put Derby in a strong position, but Arsenal could not be underestimated by any means. A 7th minute goal from Iniesta gave Derby the start they wanted, but the match was tense and nervous until James McFadden added a crucial second five minutes from time, and Derby had taken a huge step towards the title. A 2-1 win over Southampton in the League Cup saw the side into a Semi Final meeting with Manchester City too keep the impossible grand slam dream alive.

New Years Day saw a high on confidence Derby side travel to West Brom and come away with a 1-0 win as the belief continued to grow that just maybe the title could really be on its way to the club. Wins over Everton, Manchester City and Norwich mean that with 13 games to play, Derby sit a good eleven points clear of Arsenal and its looking good even from the most pessimistic of fans view.

The League Cup though wont be coming to Pride Park after a 2-2 aggregate draw with City saw the Manchester side through on the away goals rule. Wins over Nottm Forest and York though mean the treble is still very much on.

On the transfer front, two key players have left as John Heitinga was the subject of intense interest and eventually plumped to move to Arsenal for £15M, with Andres Iniesta the subject of a £20M bid from Liverpool that was too good to turn down and so he too has left the club. Coming in the way are 21 year old French attacking midfielder Sebastien Abello at £3.9M from Marseille, 25 year Belgian attacking midfielder Faris Haroun from Wolves for £6.25M and 24 year old Scots central defender Blair Miller from Hearts for £3.2M.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">| Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Derby | | 25 | 21 | 3 | 1 | 45 | 9 | +36 | 66 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Arsenal | | 25 | 16 | 7 | 2 | 48 | 17 | +31 | 55 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Liverpool | | 25 | 14 | 6 | 5 | 51 | 28 | +23 | 48 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

retired_embartl

Another p*ss easy title then Nice work on England and good luck in the UEFA Cup :thup:

shannon2007

Thanks BoN, I think

I dont think the race is over just yet as I have the fear we might collapse and Arsenal can steal it but we'll see

shannon2007

February - March 2011

As the league campaign continued with wins against Newcastle and Chelsea, a 2-2 draw at Middlesbrough turned out to be only a minor set back as Arsenal lost. In the UEFA Cup KAK were beaten 5-1 away and 2-0 at home and then we entered the crazy month of March.

The FA Cup 5th round saw Derby face Millwall, and a 1-1 away draw meant a replay back at Pride Park. Clough's side eventually triumphed 3-1, and that set them up for FIVE sucessives matches with Tottenham.

The UEFA Cup 2nd KO round came first, as McFadden bagged a brace in an excellent 3-0 away win, and then it was Ellingtons turn for a brace in the 4-0 home win. The draw for the Quarter Finals would see Derby play Lazio, with the winners due to meet Roma or Liverpool. In the League, Joey Barton was sent off and Tottenham missed a penalty in a 1-1 draw at White Hart Lane. That was the same scoreline in the FA Cup, and then with half the squad on international duty the five game streak against Tottenham ended with a 3-0 win a place in the Semis against Charlton.

The gap at the top is nine points, with a game in hand and eight to play.

retired_amyslack

FIVE in a row against Spurs - no man should have to face such a cruel and unusual punishment

shannon2007

April - May 2011

The chase for an exclusive treble entered the home straight, and with tiredness and injury starting to stretch the squad to its limits, the players and management were going to have to call upon all their resources to prevent ultimate dissapointment and despair. There is always the chance in football that things can go wrong, and there was great determination that for Derby there would only be the success their season so richly deserved.

Draws though with Wolves and Liverpool in the league showed possible signs of cracking under the stress, but wins over Charlton, and crucially Man Utd, both by 2-0 and the title was within touching distance. A win over Bolton on the 23rd of April would secure Derby only their 3rd English title, the first since 1975. With key players missing through injury it was up to the others to show what they could do, and just one minute in Cristian sent Clough's side ahead. Abello added a second from the penalty spot, and Cristian added a 3rd as the title was sewn up before halftime. Cerci grabbed a 4th in the second half, and although Bolton gained a late consolation, there was no dampening the Derby joy.

In the UEFA Cup, a 2-0 ist leg win at home to Lazio looked secure enough but a disasterous start in Italy saw Derby trailing 2-0 after just 26 minutes. A second half revival though saw goals from Abello, Rickets and Cristian as derby came back to win on the night, and moved into a semi final with Liverpool on a 5-2 aggregate. Liverpool were brushed aside easily, 2-0 and 4-1 and only the mighty Real Madrid stood between Clough and the second leg of what could be a glorious treble. A goal in each half from Nathan Ellington was enough to gain a 2-0 victory as Derby roared to European success, and even already thoughts were turning to next seasons Champions League where expectations would be sky high.

The final leg of the treble fell into place with relative ease as Charlton were overcome 2-0 in the Semis and then Wolves didnt really stand a chance as Derby trounced them 3-0 at Wembley and the name of Brian Clough was once more being sung loudly by the Derby support. There was great belief that Clough would lead them to even greater success, and the financial rewards for this great season would give him even more money with which to strengthen an already strong squad.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">| Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | C | Derby | | 38 | 26 | 10 | 2 | 64 | 17 | +47 | 88 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Arsenal | | 38 | 24 | 11 | 3 | 73 | 24 | +49 | 83 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Liverpool | | 38 | 22 | 10 | 6 | 77 | 38 | +39 | 76 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Chelsea | | 38 | 20 | 12 | 6 | 67 | 35 | +32 | 72 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Aston Villa | | 38 | 20 | 8 | 10 | 65 | 42 | +23 | 68 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Man Utd | | 38 | 17 | 13 | 8 | 45 | 32 | +13 | 64 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Newcastle | | 38 | 14 | 15 | 9 | 48 | 38 | +10 | 57 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Southampton | | 38 | 15 | 12 | 11 | 57 | 49 | +8 | 57 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Q.P.R. | | 38 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 44 | 47 | -3 | 51 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Tottenham | | 38 | 13 | 9 | 16 | 44 | 50 | -6 | 48 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 11th | | Fulham | | 38 | 11 | 13 | 14 | 32 | 43 | -11 | 46 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 12th | | Man City | | 38 | 10 | 15 | 13 | 36 | 45 | -9 | 45 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 13th | | Wolves | | 38 | 12 | 8 | 18 | 48 | 58 | -10 | 44 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 14th | | Everton | | 38 | 10 | 12 | 16 | 36 | 51 | -15 | 42 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 15th | | Middlesbrough | | 38 | 11 | 7 | 20 | 42 | 55 | -13 | 40 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 16th | | Charlton | | 38 | 8 | 12 | 18 | 33 | 51 | -18 | 36 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 17th | | West Brom | | 38 | 7 | 12 | 19 | 26 | 57 | -31 | 33 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 18th | R | Crystal Palace | | 38 | 6 | 14 | 18 | 21 | 42 | -21 | 32 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 19th | R | Norwich | | 38 | 7 | 8 | 23 | 34 | 64 | -30 | 29 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 20th | R | Bolton | | 38 | 3 | 9 | 26 | 17 | 71 | -54 | 18 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

retired_amyslack

Treble - excellent :thup: