3/1 To Win
Derby County have completed a deal to bring highly-rated Chelsea defender Fikayo Tomori to Pride Park Stadium on a season-long loan.
The 20-year-old becomes Frank Lampard’s sixth signing of the 2018 summer transfer window – following fellow Chelsea team-mate Mason Mount, Harry Wilson, Florian Jozefzoon, Jack Marriott and George Evans in moving to the Rams.
Speaking about his latest recruit, Lampard told dcfc.co.uk: “We’re really pleased to bring Fikayo in to provide us with another defensive option in central defence because, over the course of the season, we will need to be adaptable and have competition all over the pitch.
“He fits the profile for us; he is a talented young player and he has already got experience in the Championship from his loans at Brighton and Hull.
“I know him from my connections at Chelsea and, like with the other players we have brought in on loan this summer, I am confident we can be good for them and they can be good for us."
Tomori, who tasted World Cup glory with England’s Under-20s in 2017, is well known by Lampard and assistant manager Jody Morris having been part of the Chelsea Academy since joining the Blues’ Under-8s.
He was part of the successful youth team that lifted back-to-back FA Youth Cup and UEFA Youth League titles and made his senior debut in 2016, coming off the bench in a 1-1 draw against Leicester City on the final day of the campaign.
Tomori tasted promotion in 2017, having been part of the Brighton & Hove Albion side that reached the Premier League, while he also enjoyed a fruitful spell on loan at Hull City last season - playing 26 times as the Tigers retained their second-tier status.
On the international stage, the defender has represented England’s Under-19s, and was named in the UEFA European Under-19s Championship Team of the Tournament, Under-20s and most recently the Under-21s.
