Derby County & Brighton transfer now feels inevitable before February 3 deadline | OneFootball

Cashin is being pursued by Brighton and, if Saturday is anything to go by, the deal seems almost inevitable.

Derby County’s clash with Cardiff City on Saturday potentially gave a hint as to where the future of their key man Eiran Cashin may lie.

Cashin, who is a vital part of Paul Warne’s plans at Derby, has been the subject of a bid from Brighton & Hove Albion this winter a year-and-a-half after the initial transfer saga between all three parties, and - if Saturday is anything to go by - the centre-back could be about to leave his boyhood club.

The defender played in Derby’s 2-1 defeat in South Wales at the weekend, but strangely wasn’t captain for the game as that was handed on to Ben Osborn, and then appeared to wave goodbye to the travelling Rams fans after the game, prompting suspicion that his time at the club is drawing to an end.

The Rams now find themselves inside the Championship’s bottom three and losing Cashin would be a huge blow to their survival hopes, but it looks as though Brighton could well get their man.

Eiran Cashin's actions after Cardiff City 2-1 Derby County suggests exit is coming

While Brighton are yet to make an offer that is satisfactory to Derby, the small signs shown on Saturday will rightly be worrying several Derby fans.

Firstly, Cashin was unusually not handed the captain’s armband for the game, with Ben Osborn taking on the responsibility instead.

Warne has switched the captaincy duties between Cashin and Nathaniel Mendez-Laing for the majority of the season, so to see Osborn take on the role despite Cashin fully fit and starting the gamem, was certainly a surprise.

Speculation over Cashin’s future was fuelled even more after full-time on Saturday, when the 23-year-old stayed out on the pitch long after the rest of his team to clap the travelling fans.

It’s fair to say it could well be a gesture to say goodbye, as well as perhaps indicating that he wants the move.

According to reports from Derbyshire Live, Derby remain adamant he is not for sale, but with Brighton continuing to push and Cashin wanting to make the step up to a Premier League club, it almost feels inevitable that he won’t be wearing a Derby shirt come the deadline on February 3.

Brighton came within touching distance of getting the deal done in the summer of 2023, but were thwarted by the clock on deadline day. Now though, it looks like everything is beginning to tip in the south coast club's favour.

The Rams can at least take some solace from the fact that Cashin signed a new long-term deal with the club last year, so they are in a position where if they end up having to sell their star man, they can do so on their terms, and for a significant amount of money.

Losing Eiran Cashin would be a massive blow for Derby’s survival hopes

If Cashin is to depart Pride Park before the end of the window, you have to fear for Derby’s survival bid.

The Rams initially appeared to be adapting well to life back in the second tier, winning three of their first five games. However, a run of six straight league defeats, coupled with improvements from the likes of Cardiff and Hull have left Derby firmly in trouble.

Warne’s side’s main problems have come in front of goal, highlighted by the fact that of those six losses, four came without scoring.

If Cashin is to depart though, it’s highly likely they will be negatively affected at the other end of the pitch and if that happens, Derby could find themselves staring relegation in the face.

If you don’t score many goals as a team, it becomes imperative that you are tight at the back and tough to break down. The fact that they are yet to keep a clean sheet in the league without Cashin in the side will surely be a big concern.

Cashin is a commanding, reliable centre half, and he would likely improve almost every defence in the league, so ordinarily it would be perfectly fine for the Rams to be so reliant on him.

But if he departs this month, Derby simply must improve their defensive record without him in the side, or they will likely find themselves back in League One next term.

As Football League World exclusively revealed on Friday, former Rams loanee Matt Clarke could be returning to Pride Park some three-and-a-half years after last playing for the club, and they are in pole position to land the 28-year-old's services.

Being a left-footer just like Cashin, Clarke would go some way to temporarily replacing his services, but Paul Warne would need more, given Curtis Nelson has been ruled out for the remainder of the season.

There was at least one positive sign from Saturday’s defeat, in the form of Lars-Jørgen Salvesen getting off the mark for his new club.