Derby County have seriously boosted their chances of a promotion spot by signing this English veteran to solve defensive issues – Agreed?

Derby County have bagged a massive coup by signing Ashley Cole

According to BBC Sports, Derby County manager Frank Lampard has signed his former Chelsea and England teammate Ashley Cole to provide cover at the back as the Rams battle it out to secure promotion to the Premier League.

An earlier report claims that the 38-year-old left-back was keen to reunite with Lampard after being released by LA Galaxy in November last year.

Derby currently sit 6th in the Championship standings, seven points adrift of Norwich City for the second automatic promotion spot.

As things stand, the Rams still hold the last promotion playoff spot but they need to be aware of 7th-placed Bristol City, who are just a couple of points behind them. However, there is still a long way to go in a season that has already presented the fans with plenty of thrills and spills.

Lampard’s side hasn’t had the best of times over the festive period and their start to proceedings in January hasn’t been the greatest. 

Something that Derby should be wary of is their goal difference. The Rams have a goal difference of +5, which is quite less as compared to all the teams above them in the standings. To be honest, they needed to bolster their defence before the transfer deadline to avoid a potential burn out at the crunch end of the season.

The injury to Craig Forsyth has left Lampard with only a single viable option at left-back in Scott Malone, with Max Lowe returning to Aberdeen on loan after playing a couple of games for the Rams in January.

Fikayo Tomori and Richard Keogh have done a reasonable job at the heart of the defence but the long-term injury to Curtis Davies has drained Derby’s resources at the back.

To put things into perspective, Lampard has struck gold by offering his former Chelsea teammate Ashley Cole a contract. The 38-year-old is a household name in European football and still has enough left in the tank to help Derby in their bid for promotion.

The Rams need an experienced face to provide cover for Scott Malone, who is currently their only fit left-back. In fact, a player of Ashley Cole’s calibre will not take much time in establishing himself as the first-choice at Pride Park.

Cole has won multiple honours and accolades over the course of his illustrious and distinguished career which has stretched for almost two decades, including 3 Premier League titles, 7 FA Cups, Champions League and the Europa League.

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To conclude, Lampard has worked wonders by snapping up his former teammate as a free-agent – a move that can well turn out to be the X-factor that propels Derby to the Premier League next season.