Yahoo Sport 
Tom Cannon, EFL rumours and why Derby County will welcome fix to a broken system
When Derby County pressed publish on their latest set of accounts for the last financial year at 6pm on Tuesday night, the figures jumped off the page.
The headline amount was a £14.2m loss, closely followed by the fact that owner David Clowes has sunk more than £10m into the club from his own pocket in the period ending June 2024.
Wages and staff numbers have increased and the cost of rebuilding Derby from ground zero after administration was there in black and white. The academy, analytics and recruitment team have all been strengthened, while the first-team salary bill rose from £7.3m to £10.2m. Those well-versed in football accounting, such as Kieran Maguire, say these losses are standard fare when you consider that Ipswich posted losses of £18m in the aftermath of their promotion to the Championship.
READ MORE: Paul Warne reveals transfer plan as Derby County's January agenda takes shape
READ MORE: Paul Warne rules Derby County ace out of Sheffield Wednesday clash and explains situation
Clowes set out what he wanted to achieve in returning Derby back to the second tier and his handling of the club has been exemplary. He is everything you would want from an owner in that he only speaks when he needs to, he doesn't covet publicity, he invests and he allows the staff to get on with their jobs without any interference.
He has already secured his place in the club's history as its saviour, and the city will be eternally grateful for ending what was a dark chapter. But it is unfair to expect him to keep footing the bills because, let's face it, nobody has a bottomless pit of cash unless you happen to be owned by a state. The cost of running a club in the Championship will become clear in next year's accounts, but judging by Derby's modest transfer spend of £2.9m, we can safely assume they are doing so without getting caught in the boom and bust culture.
There will always be an expectation to spend more to remain competitive, which is why the club is looking for investment—a search that remains ongoing. But ultimately, the game's financial ecosystem is broken, which is why there needs to be reform. There really should be a greater distribution of wealth from the Premier League and there has been a long-standing and strong argument that the top flight has a a huge responsibility to help those clubs further down the pyramid.
However the Football League is in the process of reviewing its spending rules, with a first draft of what it would like having been sent to all clubs. The proposal is that only 85 per cent of revenue can be spent on wages, transfers and agents fees while, crucially, there are rumours of a cap on what owners are able to invest.
That should level the playing field because it will stop clubs being propped up solely by rich benefactors. It won't sit well with everybody, particularly for those clubs who, unlike Derby, do not generate huge revenue but have wealthy owners who want to chuck mindless amounts of money at transfers.
Derby's own spend since returning to the Championship has been incredibly modest when compared with other clubs. The £2.9m they forked out this summer for Ebou Adams, Kenzo Goudmijn and Jacob Widell Zetterstrom was a drop in the ocean compared to some other clubs. The fact they are in mid-table in an incredibly tough division having filled the squad with loans and free transfers is quite an achievement, particularly in what is only their third year post-administration.
Providing Derby can survive this season, which is their ultimate priority, and the new spending rules are introduced, that will give Clowes some help when they are competing for players. It should help to prevent clubs like Stoke committing to throwing ridiculous money for somebody like Tom Cannon, a player that Derby will have no doubt considered only for the finances to make it a non-starter.
That is a change that really cannot come soon enough and should bring some welcome sensibility to a world full of crazy money.
