Derby County 'close to agreeing' £6m deal for former loanee Bobby Clark

Derby County are closing in on the permanent signing of former loanee Bobby Clark.

John Percy of The Telegraph took to X to break the news that the Rams are "close to agreeing a deal worth around £6m with Red Bull Salzburg" for the 21-year-old midfielder.

The club are reportedly hopeful that the former Liverpool man will undergo a medical "later this week if talks continue to advance".

Joining on a one-year loan deal in the summer of 2025, Clark played a leading role as Derby narrowly missed out on a Championship play-off spot in the 2025/26 campaign.

The midfielder played 42 of a possible 46 games in the second flight of English football, finding the net against Middlesbrough, Charlton and Bristol City and accumulating seven goal contributions on a whole.

Clark was nominated for the EFL Young Championship Player of the Season award ahead of the annual EFL award ceremony, and while it was Leicester City's Jordan James who won the honour, the 21-year-old's efforts were recognised when being presented Derby's Young player of the Season for a stellar debut campaign in the second tier.

While the Newcastle-born midfielder undoubtedly proved handy for the Rams in their bid for promotion, the loan spell benefited Clark more than anyone after a tough 12 months in football.

He made the £10m switch from Liverpool to RB Salzburg in search of more playing in 2024, following in the footsteps of former Reds assistant manager Pepijn Lijnders, but he failed to make a sizeable impact in a relatively underwhelming debut campaign.

Seemingly surplus to requirements under the stewardship of soon to be appointed Salzburg boss Danny Rohl, a permanent return to Pride Park will be music to the ears of Derby supporters and manager John Eustace, who has previously emphasised his desire to retain the services of Clark.