Derby County head coach John Eustace hopes to have Patrick Agyemang at his disposal as early as December as the Rams striker makes good progress with his injury rehabilitation.
Agyemang ruptured his Achilles during Derby's success over Stoke City in April which ruled him out of the remainder of the season and ended his chances of appearing for the United States national team at the 2026 World Cup.
The 25-year-old netted 10 goals and registered three assists in an excellent maiden campaign in England, and his absence was felt in the final five fixtures of the season as Derby narrowly missed out on a Championship play-off berth.
Eustace still has Carlton Morris and Lars-Jørgen Salvesen at his disposal to navigate the first few months of the season, but the Rams boss is optimistic that Agyemang will have a part to play from the new year onwards - although he'd prefer not to rush the American back into action.
“Patrick’s doing really well,” said Eustace. “He’s walking around the training ground now with a bit more of a smile on his face, which is great.
“He’s not going to be available, I don’t think until December, January time, but he’s progressing really nicely, which is pleasing.
“It’s just important that we really don’t rush Pat. He’s had a really serious injury. Even when he’s getting good weeks or good months, I think there’s a time scale that we’ve got to kind of keep.
“Let’s just wait and see on that.”
Eustace was able to issue a positive update on the availability of forward Rhian Brewster, who featured in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Port Vale on Tuesday, but he doesn't expect the former Liverpool forward to be available for several more weeks.
"Rhian has had a couple of days of training," Eustace added. "He got 15 minutes, I think, against Port Vale on Tuesday, and actually scored, which is great.
“But he’s still a way off where he should be from a physical point of view. He’s not going to be available, I wouldn’t have thought, for the next four or five weeks."
Derby kick off the new campaign with an EFL Cup first round clash against newly promoted Lincoln City before commencing the Championship season with a trip to face Charlton Athletic at The Valley.
The Rams made a slow start to the previous season, winning just one of their opening 10 matches before embarking on a five-match winning streak which hauled the West Midlands club clear of any relegation conversation.
