Patience is key after Derby's underwhelming start

[Getty Images] [BBC] It would be easy to sit and pick the bones out of what Derby County didn't do well in their 2-2 draw against Cardiff City on Saturday. Individual errors, defensive wobbles, not being clinical enough with early chances, and head coach John Eustace bringing Ryan Nyambe on to shore up the defence in the closing stages, rather than opting for the attacking threat of Filip Bilbija to try and win the game. However, despite coming away from Pride Park feeling frustrated with all of those things, and only taking a point at home to a team who are tipped for relegation with a pretty poor performance overall, I still don't believe this is the style of football and type of result we're going to see consistently throughout the season. I look back to last season when we shipped eight goals in our first two matches, and were only able to secure our first win after five matches had been played. That victory ended up being the only one we saw in our first 10 league games. Thinking back on that, I don't feel worried about the Rams' disappointing start to this campaign. Maybe there's an element of expectation after how well we managed to develop across last season, and how much improvement we made to get ourselves into the play-off picture with only a handful of games remaining. However, this Derby team is without so many players who were key to mounting that play-off push. Patrick Agyemang, Ben Brereton Diaz, David Ozoh, and Jayden Banel all made a huge difference to the quality of Derby's performances and results. It is no secret that Derby need to add greater quality out wide before the transfer window closes. Even simply bringing Brereton Diaz back into the fold would make a significant difference to how effective the Rams could be in the final third. Similarly, bringing someone like Ozoh back would add much needed legs and energy to the midfield. His ability to cover ground, take risks on the ball, and drive the Rams up the pitch would completely change the dynamic of the side. This Derby team isn't missing an awful lot. Two or three signings that could come straight in as first-team starters, and you're looking at almost a carbon copy of what happened last season. A poor start doesn't equate to a poor season. Two underwhelming results and performances out of 46 are not going to define Derby's season. We will play worse than we did on Saturday and win games, we will play better and lose, that is simply the reality of Championship football. Burnley and West Ham United are two teams that have been tipped to bounce straight back to the Premier League and achieve promotion this season. Both of which have had exactly the same starts to the campaign as the Rams. The first couple of months of the season are not worth passing judgement on. Only towards mid-October, about six weeks after the transfer window has closed, will supporters get a much clearer picture of what Derby may or may not go on to achieve this season. The table will begin to take true shape, new signings will have had time to bed in, and Eustace should be able to select a fairly consistent preferred starting lineup. It will be a case of being patient and calm until then, hoping for a productive final week in the transfer market, and getting behind the team as they find their rhythm again. Keep the faith. You can often catch Amelia Warren as a guest on BBC Radio Derby. Latest Derby County news, analysis and fan views