Derby County has been savvy in the transfer market in recent years, bringing in outstanding players at a low cost.
The Rams signed 11 new additions this summer, hoping to maintain their Championship position after being promoted from League One on the final day of the 2023/24 season.
Kayden Jackson, 30, joined Derby when his contract with Ipswich Town expired.
Jackson helped the Tractor Boys return to the Premier League for the first time in 22 years, with Keiran McKenna’s side playing top-flight football just two seasons after finishing third behind Paul Warne’s Derby.
Nonetheless, the 30-year-old, who can play as a striker or winger, has made an immediate impact in the East Midlands and is swiftly gaining fans.
Jackson’s goalscoring has been a surprising quality
Jackson landed in Derby without any fanfare. He was a solid player for Ipswich, but he never really lit up Portman Road, instead playing as a backup to some of the club’s more clinical players, such Conor Chaplin.
The former Wrexham attacker scored only 13 goals in the three years before to joining the Rams, but he has already scored three times in black and white.
All of his goals have occurred at Pride Park Stadium and have been extremely vital for the squad in various scenarios.
His first came in the Carabao Cup, when his 68th-minute volley on the turn won the game for the team over Chesterfield.
Just a few days later, he scored the only goal in a 1-0 Championship triumph over Middlesbrough. He took advantage of Isiah Jones’ poor back pass to Boro goalkeeper Senny Dieng, turning him and shooting into an empty net.
All three of Jackson’s goals have been very different from one another, with the best coming in Derby’s 3-0 victory over Bristol City ahead of the season’s first international break.
He hammered the ball past Max O’Leary, giving the Rams a 2-0 lead and ensuring that the home club would take all three points.
Jackson has linked up well with Nathaniel Mendez-Laing already
The Rams have added a lot more pace to their roster in recent years, especially down the wings, and Jackson only contributes to that.
Derby’s wingers had numerous opportunities to attack the opposition’s full-backs in their victory over the Robins. Nathaniel Mendez-Laing has had the freedom of the wings in League One throughout his first two seasons, and Jackson appears to have increased the threat on the other side since his arrival.
It’s an attack that could scare Championship defences this year, and with Jerry Yates’ outstanding movement causing havoc for centre-backs, Derby will not be taken lightly, as some have predicted.
With Cardiff City coming to Pride Park after the international break, Warne’s side has a chance to inflict further damage on a club that has struggled thus far in 2024/25, and Jackson will be eager to add to his goal total.
It came as little surprise that Ipswich let the striker go, but capitalising on that decision appears to be an early masterstroke by the Rams.