John Eustace: Derby County name Blackburn Rovers boss as new head coach

Confirmation of his Blackburn exit comes a day after the Lancashire side claimed just their third win in 12 league games.

Despite picking up just 11 points from a possible 36 since late December, Rovers have maintained their spot among the high-fliers.

His final game in the dugout for Rovers was Sunday’s FA Cup exit against Premier League side Wolves.

It is the second time in as many seasons that Eustace has left a club while they are in the play-off places in the Championship table.

While this move is of his own volition, he had his time at Birmingham surprisingly ended in October 2023 by new owners who wanted Wayne Rooney in charge.

It was a decision that sparked Blues’ slide down the table, which culminated in relegation to League One later that season.

Blackburn had been in relegation trouble themselves when Eustace took the job at Ewood Park and, after keeping them up, he has guided them among the promotion hopefuls this term.

Derby’s 10-match winless run across all competitions – which included seven straight league defeats – has them fourth from bottom of the table and in danger of making an immediate return to League One.

Eustace had two spells at Derby as a player, with his first spent helping the Rams avoid relegation from the second tier in 2008-09 while on loan from Watford.

He moved to Pride Park on a permanent deal in 2013 and saw out the final two years of his playing career.

It was in that second spell he helped them get to within one win of the Premier League, with the Rams beaten in the Championship play-off final by QPR in 2014.