Paul Warne says he is excited to get Derby County’s 2023/24 Sky Bet League One season started this weekend.
Derby will get the campaign started on Saturday afternoon when they host Wigan Athletic at Pride Park Stadium (3pm kick-off).
The visit of Shaun Maloney’s side kicks off an action-packed month for the Rams to start the campaign with five league games and at least one Carabao Cup tie on the fixture list before the end of August.
Wigan are one of the three sides to have come down from the Championship last term and will pose a stern test for Warne’s side, although the Latics will start the season on minus eight points owing to off-the-field issues from their previous ownership.
After a positive pre-season with his squad, Warne spoke to RamsTV to look ahead to the season-opener on home turf and give his final message to the Derby faithful in the lead-up to the big kick-off.
On getting started again and his reflections on pre-season, which included a Training Camp in Spain…
We’re as ready as we can be. Pre-season seems to go in a heartbeat and we’re looking forward to it all getting started on Saturday. Everyone is in good fettle, but we’ve got a few training sessions to get through yet.
I think pre-season went pretty well. The only downside is that Tom Barkhuizen and Louie Sibley have been struggling with calf issues but otherwise everyone has come through it really well. We’ve seen people stepping up and the new lads settling in really well.
The lads have a good idea of what we expect of them, but I know it is just words right now until it comes to Saturday at 3pm and it all kicks off.We’ll have a better idea of what we’ve got after a couple of weeks and people know that we still need a couple of new faces in as well; we need to bolster the midfield and up top.
On the biggest takeaway from pre-season…
Probably the fact that the collective group all have the same ambition. I am not saying that isn’t the case before every season, but it feels like a really positive environment. All the lads want success and they have a better understanding of what is required in League One. A few of the lads hadn’t played League One this time last year and they know that football eutopia doesn’t get you promoted, it takes all types of performances and moments. The attention to detail is prevalent this year and that has pleased me the most.
I feel we’re ready to have a right go, but I know we’ve got a horrendous start with some of the teams we are facing! We’ve got a few of the top teams and top games to get us started. We will have to be at our best to win any game, but I feel like the dressing room is positive place and eager to get started.
On who will take on the captaincy…
Conor Hourihane will be the captain. He was the convincing winner and his leadership in the off-season and pre-season, with how he talks on the pitch, makes him a very good captain. When he is on the pitch, he is the captain. When he’s off the pitch, he’s always the captain. I’ve had loads of conversations with him and Fozzy in recent months and he is a natural leader anyway. I wanted to see if the dressing room saw the same as me and that is a massive tick. It is an honour to lead the team and he will get the fun stuff at the end of the season if we are successful, but it is also about how you lead the team, behave, live your life and set standards. I think that has been a driving force behind the decision the lads have made and I am really pleased they want him as the captain.
Football captains are important and I respect them massively but in other sports the captain does more on the pitch or coaches out there in action. In football, I don’t think that is the case. They do a lot off the pitch and are the spokesperson for the team. Conor will be there for all the captaincy stuff like the coin toss and that sort of thing, but I expect everyone to be a leader and be vocal on the pitch.
On how the squad is shaping up…
We had a behind-closed-doors game earlier this week which was important to get more minutes into some of the lads. Overall, the group is in a really good place. The next few days isn’t about fitness, it is about having the players football fresh and aware of the tough game ahead.
On facing Shaun Maloney's Wigan to get the season started…
Let’s not kid ourselves, they will go into the season with massive expectation still despite their points deduction and challenges - a bit like us last year. Their manager has been in for a while and, like myself, will have been able to put his imprint on the team in pre-season.
Wigan have a really attacking front four and if they go with that then I think it is the best frontline in the league. We’ve got to keep them quiet and ask questions of their backline. They are a good team and they’ll have the ball a lot. They won’t come and park the bus and with how they play it will be difficult to get the ball off them. That said, when we have the ball we can also ask equal questions of them.
It won’t be a league decider; we won’t win the league with a victory and it isn’t relegation by Christmas if we lose. It always takes a few games for everyone to get into their stride.
On a final message to the fans ahead of the season starting…
From a fans point of view, I just hope they enjoy the season. I say it to the players all the time but football seasons and life is too short. The season can be gone in a heartbeat so let’s enjoy it for what it is.
It is theatre at the end of the day; you turn up and don’t know what you’re going to get. That’s the beauty of it! It is an emotional rollercoaster but everyone at this football club is doing all they can to get Derby County promoted.
I would ask that everyone stays with the team and more so when things aren’t going well. You don’t need to sing when the team is 4-0 up and cruising, but when the team is losing or not playing well and they have the fanbase behind them it can be a right boost.
We will do everything we can for a successful season. It is a great club to be part of and manage and I hope it is great to be a fan of Derby County too.
