Since I last wrote this column in May, a month ago, there seems to be so little happening, that it feels like Pride Park has turned into a morgue.

But that is part of the style of the new administration at Pride Park – both on the club management side and on the footballing side. Activity takes place without much fuss or fanfare. It naturally disappoints some fans who want to see some exciting evidence that a new dawn is emerging.

There is some indication that this is indeed happening, for example the long overdue and much needed culling has continued apace – Todd went early amidst some hype to Australia, followed a month later by Sterjovski. Camara has apparently been dispatched to the football equivalent of Siberia – St Mirren in the Scottish League. Carroll is said to be on his way to Wigan, linking up again with Martinez (will he ever leave Swansea?), while Claude Davis’s agent is busily talking up the fact that Crystal Palace are keen on him.

It would not surprise me if a further seven or so were found to be on their way out in the first two weeks of the transfer window, in effect making sure that the finances are stablised ready for a new intake. Some of those being waved goodbye will be in their thirties or more who have been drawing a decent wage but performing indecently.

There are some players who are throwing up some imponderables. One is Ellington who surely has made such a mess of his career that not even his original club - Watford – want him back, although that might change with the departure of Rodgers to Reading and the appointment of Mackay as manager. It seems clear that Ellington will find his way out of Pride Park one way or another, possibly to the nearest Mosque, while uncertainty surrounds Barnes.

Barnes, who apparently got up Pearson’s olfactory membranes, is another that posits a fascinating conundrum to us fans out in the cold. Knowing of Clough’s insistence that players in the squad have to be highly committed to his way of training and working, it seems unlikely that Barnes will stay with his aspirations of performing in the Premiership, yet Fulham have shown themselves reluctant to invest in a player that they have seen at close quarters for a few months.

It would indeed be surprising if any Premiership team were to come in for him, as he has yet to demonstrate his fitness - let alone a degree of consistent skill sufficient for the Premiership.

Mears is another – the enigmatic furore that surrounded his departure to Marseilles has had fans in stitches depending on which version is told. Is he another who will, now that Jewell has departed, show himself willing to accept Clough’s strictures? Or is he on his way out?

Surely these will be resolved in the not too distant future? Despite footballers’ legendary thickness in the proverbial grey matter, it cannot have escaped them that if you don’t abide by what Clough says, then you do not play. It is as simple as that, and most footballers want to play – it is what they enjoy doing most. So either you follow Nigel’s rules or you find somewhere else less demanding.

Once these and others have been found pastures new, then Clough and Pearson will be able to see what leverage they have in terms of financial muscle to prise their wanted ones from other teams. It seems that some are already over bar the actual signing in the transfer window, but unlike Jewell, Clough operates so low under the radar, that some will be a surprise when announced and some not as markers were put down very early on.

Whatever is happening, it is certain that there is purposeful activity quite unlike the activities by previous incumbents. The lack of care and thought that went into the last two pre-season transfer windows are all too glaringly obvious to be re-told here. Suffice it to say that while fans might twitch with impatience at the apparent inertia at Pride Park, it surely goes without saying that Clough and Pearson are earning every penny of their salaries and that within the next month, we shall see more events unfolding before our eyes.

Photo: Action Images

Derby County Polls