Derby County are in dire need of a new goalkeeper before the season commences next month and have identified a target in the Swedish top-flight, according to reports.
Viktor Johansson was initially a prime target for the Rams prior to the transfer window opening when he was still with Rotherham United. Head coach Paul Warne signed Johansson during his time in charge of the Millers and was keen to reunite with the shot-stopper. However, Stoke City eventually won the race for the 25-year-old, having activated his £1 million release clause.
It was back to the drawing board for Warne after missing out on Johansson’s signature and another player on the club’s list was former Arsenal and Brighton and Hove Albion goalkeeper Mathew Ryan who was a free agent after leaving Dutch side AZ Alkmaar. Nevertheless, despite already signing an AZ player this summer in Kenzo Goudmijn, Derby have missed out to Italian giants Roma in the race for the Australia international.
Another name on the club’s list is Djurgardens star Jacob Widell Zetterstrom, as has been reported by Swedish outlet Aftonbladet, who are claiming that Derby County have already made a bid to take the 26-year-old to Pride Park but this has been swiftly rejected as his current club felt as though the offer was not substantial enough to let him leave. It is also believed that Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers are in the running to sign Zetterstrom but the West Midlands outfit have yet to make a formal approach.
Zetterstrom currently boasts a market value of £2.1 million, as per Transfermarkt, and still has 18 months remaining on his deal with Djurgardens. It is unclear just how much Derby bidded for the player but the club may need to fork out at least over £2 million should they want to complete this signing.
Writer’s View
Bringing a new goalkeeper to Pride Park is a must right now. Josh Vickers is the only keeper Warne has at Derby County after he allowed Joe Wildsmith to leave as a free agent and subsequently move to Championship rivals West Bromwich Albion, while Scott Loach announced his retirement at the age of 36 earlier in the summer.
Zetterstrom could be the perfect option for the Rams as he still has plenty of time on his side to develop into a better player and could potentially be worth a lot more than the board would pay for him now. Furthermore, he has played 14 times in the Allsvenskan this season and has conceded merely 12 goals while keeping seven clean sheets which is very impressive.
