As promoted Derby County lost 4-2 against Blackburn Rovers, the realities of life back in the Championship became clear very soon.
The hosts were rewarded for a quick start when Tyrhys Dolan scored in the 19th minute, and they dominated the remainder of the first half.
Derby fought back after the break, and Curtis Nelson’s powerful header in the 67th minute levelled the game. However, the job before of Paul Warne’s players this season was highlighted by a triple Blackburn substitution that included new signings Andi Weimann and Yuki Ohashi, as well as the prolific Sammie Szmodics. They blasted the Rams away with three goals in 12 minutes.
Kane Wilson headed a late consolation for Derby but this was a sobering reintroduction to the Championship after a two-year absence.
Rams fans were quick to rule on the defeat, taking to social media to make a plea for more new signings before the transfer window shuts on August 30.
Anthony: Blackburn were poor. Derby were worse.
Ram in Sweden: Far too many negatives that won’t be fixable without some money spent. The fact Nelson played well and we conceded four worries me.
David von Brockdorff: This was embarrassing, and now we need to regroup and take a deep breath.
Gems: It’s early days. Our frustration should lie with recruitment not the players. They were able to bring on three subs of absolute quality, who all scored and changed the flow of the game entirely. We were not. We absolutely NEED more players and soon!
Danny Harrison: If all we can score is set piece goals then we’re in for a long and disappointing season.
Nigel Roberts: Defence is horrific and a new keeper needs to be in place ASAP. He will earn his money this season!
Dandcfc: New striker, left-back, centre-back and keeper please. Miles off it.
Sam: Gonna be a long season if we don’t get a decent goalie.
Perdeep: 4000 holes in Derby’s defence, but other than that onwards we go to the next game.
Scott Parsloe: It’s early days, so let’s not panic just yet. But that defence needs tightening up massively, plus there’s still time for more signings in the transfer window. Keep the faith!
Cam Storer: Haven’t seen a Derby team defend as badly since 2008.