Andre Wisdom believes he has returned to Derby County all the better for his loan experiences in the last three years.
The 24-year-old defender joined Derby from Premier League side Liverpool earlier this month for an undisclosed fee, penning a four-year contract.
Wisdom spent the vast majority of the 2013/14 season on loan with the Rams and played every game following his arrival in October 2013.
Derby reached the Sky Bet Championship’s Play-Off Final during that campaign but tasted a 1-0 defeat to Queens Park Rangers at Wembley Stadium.
Wisdom then went on to spend the next three years out on loan once again at West Bromwich Albion, Norwich City and Red Bull Salzburg to gain more first-team experience.
His time at West Brom and Norwich provided him with the chance to gain more Premier League experience, following a handful of appearances with Liverpool earlier in his career.
At Salzburg, during the 2016/17 season, Wisdom stepped out of his comfort zone to learn a new culture as well as taking up the opportunity to play football in a different country.
He impressed as they won the Austrian Premier League, as well as the Austrian Cup, and he believes he’s all the better for it.
However, he feels that his best form in his career so far came in a Derby shirt and he’s hoping to pick up where he left off.
Wisdom told RamsTV: “The other loans that I had were good experiences but I do feel that I could have done better in them.
“I mean that on a personal basis. After I left Derby, it was like something was missing and I am not sure what it was – maybe confidence.
“I hope coming back here I can pick up where I left off and kick on again.
“I had some good times out on loan; at Salzburg we won the league and the cup and that was brilliant.
“When that opportunity came up I was a bit sceptical about going to Austria, but I am glad I went looking back.
“I came out my comfort zone, had to learn a new language and pick up on different things.
“The first few months were difficult, especially in terms of communication and I did wonder what I was doing, but as time went on I settled in more and found myself in the team.”
He added: “It was very different for me. The decision to go there was to do something different and that was certainly the case.
“Once I was settled in I really enjoyed it. It was different in terms of how they played and worked, but to go and be so successful was fantastic and I’ll take some good times away with me.”
