Derby County Face Goalkeeper Crisis After Zetterström Injury

Derby County have been dealt another heavy blow, with first-choice goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterström facing up to two months out with a knee injury.

The 28-year-old was hurt during the second half of Saturday’s 2-1 defeat at Birmingham City. For a moment it looked serious enough to end his afternoon on the spot. He went down, received treatment, and Derby fans braced for the worst.

Instead, Zetterström chose to play on.

He finished the Championship match, but the damage was done. Subsequent assessment has ruled him out until around mid-November, a significant setback for a Derby side already creaking under the strain of an injury crisis.

Sweden blow, Derby headache

The injury has forced Zetterström to withdraw from the Sweden squad for their upcoming Nations League fixtures. He will miss four group games in late September and early October, against Romania, Poland and Bosnia-Herzegovina.

For Derby, the timescale is brutal. A lay-off stretching into mid-November means the Swede could sit out as many as eight league matches. For a team already struggling near the wrong end of the table, losing a World Cup performer and summer transfer target is the last thing they needed.

Derby did well to keep hold of Zetterström in the last window after his displays on the biggest stage attracted serious interest. Now they must cope without him just as the season starts to bite.

Injury list grows longer

The setback came on a grim afternoon at St Andrew’s. Before Zetterström’s knee problem, Henrik Meister had already been carried off on a stretcher after a head knock, adding to the sense of a squad unravelling physically.

Both now join an already swollen casualty list. Matt Clarke, Derry Murkin, Filip Bilbija, Rhian Brewster, Craig Forsyth and Lewis Travis are all confined to the treatment room, leaving Derby’s options stretched in almost every department.

Vickers’ moment

With Zetterström sidelined, the gloves are expected to pass to Josh Vickers. The 28-year-old has been named on the bench in every game so far this season, waiting patiently behind a keeper in top form.

Now the wait is over.

Derby’s season, already fragile, will lean heavily on Vickers’ ability to step in and steady a side fighting to keep its footing in the Championship.