City begin their competitive campaign at Pride Park on Saturday, and while Chris Cohen and Tom Shaw have their own selection decisions to make, Derby County are heading into the Carabao Cup tie without several established first-team players.
The Rams have assembled a squad packed with Championship experience and attacking quality, but John Eustace will not have everybody available for the visit of the Imps. Rhian Brewster and Derry Murkin have both been ruled out, Patrick Agyemang remains a long-term absentee and there is also uncertainty surrounding Carlton Morris.
For City, that potentially removes some significant threats from the equation. Derby’s league campaign does not begin until the following weekend, meaning there is little incentive for Eustace to take unnecessary risks in the opening competitive fixture of 2026/27.
As reported by former Lincoln correspondent Leigh Curtis, Brewster and Murkin are expected to remain unavailable for another four or five weeks after spending much of the summer recovering from surgery.
Brewster’s absence in particular removes a player who became increasingly influential for Derby last season. The former Liverpool and Sheffield United forward scored seven times during his first campaign at Pride Park before a knee problem brought his season to a premature end in March.
He has started stepping up his rehabilitation and even scored during a brief appearance for a Derby XI against Port Vale this week, but Saturday will come much too soon.
“They’ve ramped up their rehab. Rhian has had a couple of days of training. 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. Derry is about the same, really. He’s stepped up his rehab. He trained a little bit yesterday, but again, we have to remember these guys have been out for four or five months.
“It’s not going to be a case of just being on the training pitch and then ready to go.”
Murkin is another player City would probably rather not encounter. The left-back joined Derby from Utrecht in February and quickly established himself in Eustace’s side, providing two assists and earning Player of the Match on his first start against Blackburn Rovers.
He underwent minor back surgery after missing the closing weeks of last season and, despite returning to the training pitch in a limited capacity, he will also sit out the Carabao Cup tie.
There is an even longer wait ahead for Agyemang. The United States international suffered a ruptured Achilles against Stoke City in April and is not expected to return until around Christmas or the beginning of 2027. He scored ten Championship goals during his debut season with Derby and provides the sort of physical test City’s new-look defensive unit could probably do without in their first competitive outing together.
“Patrick’s doing really well. 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.”
Perhaps the most interesting name from a City perspective is Morris. Unlike the other three, the experienced striker has not been ruled out, although his involvement remains uncertain after he picked up a knock against Burton Albion last weekend. Morris was subsequently left out when Derby faced Rotherham United on Tuesday, and Eustace has indicated a decision will be made on whether he is ready to face the Imps.
The 30-year-old scored 12 league goals for the Rams last season and has considerable experience at this level and above, including Premier League football with Luton Town. If Derby decide not to risk him, Eustace would be without three of his senior attacking options in Brewster, Agyemang and Morris.
That certainly does not make Saturday straightforward. Derby still possess plenty of quality and will start the afternoon as favourites on their own ground, while Eustace has far greater depth available to him than these absences alone might suggest.
However, this is a difficult opening assignment for City as they prepare for their first Championship campaign in 65 years. If there are players we would rather not see lining up on the opposite side at Pride Park, Brewster, Agyemang and Morris would all feature fairly prominently on that list.
Two definitely will not be there. City may discover on Saturday afternoon whether they have avoided the third as well.
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