Derby County will be watching Southampton FC closely for one very big reason | OneFootball

The Saints are sat on nine points in the Premier League right now, and still need two more to match the Rams' record low of 11 set in 2007/08.

Derby County's 2007/08 campaign has gone down in infamy in Premier League history, with the 11 points that they accrued over the course of 38 games the lowest that a side has recorded since the division's overhaul in 1992.

Up until now, many teams have threatened to break that record, but few have been left in a position where it looks incredibly viable that they would end the season with less than the Rams' tally.

Sheffield United looked as though they could have come close during the 2023/24 term, but a 3-1 victory over Luton Town in February saw them surpass the 11-point mark, and they went on to end the campaign with 16 points to their name.

However, Southampton are now in an extremely desperate position with their Championship return nearly certain already, and Derby will be keeping a keen eye on the number of points that they are sat on.

Southampton could be the team to break Derby's unwanted record

The Saints have won just two matches all season, and with just three draws to go with it, they are matching the Rams' record after 27 games.

It must also be noted that the Hampshire outfit have a goal difference worse than Derby's was at this point, and supporters will have an incredible amount of fear that their side are on their way to breaking the record.

Russell Martin had guided the team to promotion through the play-offs with a 1-0 win over Leeds United at Wembley in May, but he was sacked in December after the club's 13th defeat in 16 games, having only picked up one win and two draws by that point.

Ivan Juric was granted the opportunity to restore some pride at St. Mary's Stadium, but so far he has found it tough to galvanise his players, who are not just lacking confidence, but also the ability to compete in the division.

It is an incredibly similar situation to Derby's 17 years ago, as Paul Jewell took over from the departing Billy Davies, and he was not able to inspire his team despite having the January transfer window to make improvements.

The gap between the clubs in the Premier League and those in the Championship is widening every year, and it looks incredibly likely that the three promoted teams will come straight back down for a second successive season.

Southampton's demise could give Derby supporters to cheer about in tough times of their own

This campaign has not been a good one for the Rams themselves in the Championship, and Southampton breaking their points record could be the only shining light in what has been an incredibly tough year.

Derby need to find wins quickly to ensure that they can stay in the second tier and make a visit to St. Mary's next season. John Eustace has hit work cut out to close the gap to those just outside the bottom three, and he needs the confidence of a first win as head coach to help with that.

Nevertheless, with just a couple of months to go in the 2024/25 campaign, there will be a great desire from the majority of Rams supporters to finally see their unwanted record move to another club.