INTERVIEW: “More To Come” - Eustace Looks Ahead To Second Half Of Campaign

Head Coach John Eustace says there is ‘lots more to come’ from his Derby County side as they prepare to enter the second half of the 2025/26 season.

The Rams sit 11th in the Sky Bet Championship table ahead of Monday evening’s trip across the East Midlands to take on Leicester City (7:45pm kick off).

Eustace has been encouraged by the progression made during the opening months of the campaign and the way the group have responded to setbacks along the way too.

Boxing Day’s battling 1-1 draw away at Birmingham City extended the Rams’ unbeaten run to four matches in the league, taking them to the midpoint of their league campaign.

Ahead of the trip to Leicester, Eustace gave RamsTV his overall reflections on the opening 23 games, as well as highlighting what he wishes to see from his side during the second half of the season, starting at King Power Stadium on Monday evening in their final outing of 2025.

On Watching His Side Evolve:

The seeds were sown last year. Every day we come in, the lads roll their sleeves up, and you can see their commitment is there every day.

The staff are working so hard day in, day out, to make sure that we have the right environment to train in. The coaches are coaching really well with the group.

Home and away, the lads are ready. We saw that with the guys that came in at Birmingham. That's what I'm very proud of.

It's important that we can see progression. I'm really proud of the players' efforts throughout the season so far.

On Managing The Highs And Lows Of The Championship Season:

Of course, we want more, but we have to be realistic as well. We’ve had lots of ups and downs already this season, and the way we've come back from those setbacks has been really pleasing.

We just need to keep building. When it comes to setbacks, it’s a case of: How do we adapt? How do we adjust? How do we get points? It's important that the group don't get too disappointed with the lows and stay level-headed with the highs, which I know they will.

On Having A Long-Term Process:

There's lots more to come, but the most important thing is throughout the highs and lows, we all stick together and realise this is a long process, not a short process.

We're here to build over the next two to three seasons and beyond. We're laying good foundations to do that.

We want to make Derby County, which is a fantastic football club, one that's pushing at the right end of the Championship and pushing for promotion.

As I've said before, it's going to take time. I think we're showing great signs of moving forward. Hopefully in this second half of the season, we can keep working hard and continue growing and showing good signs.

On A Tight Turnaround Ahead Of Leicester City:

It's important for the boys to rest and recover over this period. We'll have to see who's fit and available first and foremost, but it's another fantastic game for us.

We'll have a game plan and the lads know their jobs inside out. We'll be ready and hopefully we can have another positive performance with another sell-out away support behind us. We want to do them proud.