Derby County Opinion: Rams should try and win the race for David Turnbull
According to reports from Bristol Post, playoff contenders Derby County, Bristol City and recently-relegated Cardiff City are all interested in Scottish starlet David Turnbull.
Bristol Post understands that all the aforementioned clubs had scouts in attendance for Motherwell’s 2-0 defeat to St. Johnstone on Saturday to keep tabs on 19-year-old breakout star David Turnbull.
A product of Motherwell’s youth system, Turnbull broke into the first-team last season and was used sporadically but the talented teenager has really come of age in the Scottish Premiership this term.
Turnbull has enjoyed a hugely- impressive breakthrough season at Motherwell in the Scottish top-flight, establishing himself as a regular under manager Steve Robinson and earning rave reviews for his performances.
Turnbull has made eyeballs turn in his first full season, contributing with 9 goals and 5 assists from 25 league appearances for Motherwell, numbers which are quite remarkable for a central midfielder. It is not surprising to see why he is rated so highly at his boyhood club and his red-hot form has already prompted the EFL Championship clubs to come circling around like sharks.
The 19-year-old has represented Scotland at all youth levels from U16 to U21, earning a total of 7 caps for his nation at all youth levels comprised and his successful breakthrough season has put him in the reckoning for a call-up to the senior squad.
Essentially a central midfielder by trade, Turnbull has the versatility to play in a more attacking role further up the pitch and also as a left-sided midfielder on the flanks.
To put things into perspective, Turnbull has a really impressive profile for a player of his age and he looks like a real talent at this point of his career.
Given that he has been in a scintillating run of form in the Scottish Premiership this season, one would expect him to acclimatise to the EFL Championship in due course of time and Derby County can certainly look at him as a wonderful long-term investment.
Derby secured the final playoff spot in the Championship with a last-ditch 3-1 victory over West Brom on the final day but the Rams suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Leeds United in the first leg of the playoff semi-finals.
Frank Lampard’s side still have a chance of making it to the finals to face Aston Villa at Wembley, as the Rams look to make a return to the top-flight for the first time since 2007-08.
The Rams have relied heavily on their loanees Fikayo Tomori, Harry Wilson and Mason Mount to propel them to the playoffs this season.
It might sound a bit harsh but their own players, barring Jayden Bogle, Bradley Johnson and a few others, haven’t done enough to help the club and that is something that needs to change if Derby are to hit greater heights in the foreseeable future.
Bringing in a talented youngster like David Turnbull should certainly help their cause, irrespective of whether they make it to the Premier League or stay in the Championship to challenge for promotion. Bradley Johnson has done pretty well in central midfield but Derby currently do not have much quality in their midfield options.
Craig Forsyth is out of contract in the summer while Tom Huddlestone has just more than a year remaining on his current contract after triggering an extension.
The departure of Mason Mount is going to weaken the side to a large extent but Max Bird is a player who they can look up to in the coming days.
It doesn’t look like Duane Holmes’ potential is going to be fulfilled at Pride Park and the Rams need to look at other young players in the market to bolster their ranks. The likes of Joe Ledley and Leicester City loanee Andy King hasn’t played a significant role under Lampard due to fitness problems and Derby should start looking elsewhere.
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David Turnbull has shown strong signs of excellence very early in his career and Derby could have a gem in their hands if they manage to strike a deal for the 19-year-old Scottish youth international this summer.