Derby County: Multi-million pound Reading FC man did not live up to hype – View

In January 2016, Derby County were in the top two of the Championship, and Nick Blackman’s signing from Reading FC was expected to boost the team’s promotion chances. However, not everything lived up to expectations.

Blackman, who was born in Salford, Greater Manchester, attended Manchester United’s academy for five years starting at age eight. After unsuccessful bids to Bury and Preston North End, he joined the now-defunct Macclesfield Town and signed his first professional contract in 2007.

At 17, he made his League Two debut against Accrington Stanley, losing 3-2 in the season’s second-to-last game. Macclesfield finished 22nd this season, with Blackman looking to play a bigger role in the coming season.

Blackman’s injury stopped his intentions for 2007/08, and he did not appear until November, when he scored his first professional goal against Northampton Town.

Despite just making 12 appearances for the Silkmen, Blackburn Rovers signed the highly-rated prospect on a two-and-a-half-year deal in January 2009. He later moved on loan to Blackpool, Oldham Athletic, Mothewell, and Aberdeen.

His first season in Scotland with Motherwell was a breakout year for the Barbadian international, as he scored 10 goals in the Scottish Premier League in just 18 appearances in 2010/11, including his maiden professional hat-trick against St. Johnstone.

Blackman returned to England.

Although Blackman had begun to demonstrate his abilities away from his parent club, he failed to transfer them back to Rovers. He appeared in only one Premier League game, a six-minute cameo against Wolverhampton Wanderers on the opening day in August 2011.

After spending the previous season in the Premier League Reserve League, the six-foot-two striker joined Sheffield United in League One the following year.

He was a key player for the Blades until January 2013. Blackman was given the freedom of Sheffield United’s front three, playing in a variety of positions and scoring 11 goals in 28 games.

His goal-scoring form kept his team in contention for the play-offs throughout the 2012-13 season, and he began to attract the interest of Premier League and Championship clubs.

Reading FC faces relegation from the Premier League.

Reading, a Premier League club, shown interest in Blackman. The Berkshire club had achieved promotion to the first level the year before, after finishing first in the Championship.

However, their first season back at the top level of English football did not go well. The Royals had only 19 points in the first 23 games of the season, ranking them 18th.

On January 30, 2013, Reading signed the ex-Blackburn player for an undisclosed price on a three-and-a-half year contract. Blackman had played against his new side for his former club just two days before the move, when the Blades were thrashed 4-0 in the FA Cup Fourth Round.

During his arrival, he expressed excitement and eagerness to the media.

“I met the gaffer last night, and he was amazing with me. I couldn’t have asked for anything more from him and Nick Hammond. I can’t wait to play, and I hope to get involved as soon as possible.”

After watching from the stands in a 2-2 home draw against Chelsea, the new forward made his debut in a 2-1 triumph over Sunderland. However, their condition began to deteriorate.

After making his debut for Stoke City, Blackman was benched against Wigan Athletic before making a brief appearance in Everton’s 3-1 loss. He struggled to make an impact on the squad, appearing only twice more until the end of the season, scoring no goals and assisting on only one.

After a draw against Chelsea, Reading lost 10 of their next 13 matches, indicating a lack of progress. This streak eventually saw the Royals slip back down to the Championship after finishing 19th, costing manager Brian McDermott his job in the process.

Final years in Berkshire, then relocate to Derby

Reading fell out on the play-offs by one point, despite their goal of returning to the Championship. Blackman appeared in 30 league games in 2013/14, but scored only four goals.Despite playing 37 games the next season, the 25-year-old forward struggled to score goals. In 2014/15, he scored only three goals in the Championship, two of which came in two games. Despite a nine-point victory, Reading finished 19th in a poor campaign.

Unlike prior years, manager Steve Clarke gave Blackman game time from the start of the 2015/16 season. By matchday 13, the Barbadian international had scored nine goals, a sign of newfound confidence.

Prior to a January transfer to Derby, the player scored two more goals. Rams manager Paul Clement aims to return the club to the Premier League for the first time since 2008.

Struggling in Derby County.

Blackman joined the East Midlands club on a three-and-a-half-year agreement worth £2.5 million. His contract at Reading was set to expire in the summer.

Clement, who previously coached Blackman as an assistant manager at Blackburn, is excited to welcome one of the Championship’s top scorers to the club.

“There has been a lot of interest in him, so we’re naturally happy that he has chosen to join us.”

Ironically, his first game in black and white was against his former club, and he played the entire 90 minutes in a 1-1 tie at Pride Park Stadium.

Derby, who had led the Championship on Boxing Day 2015, went winless in their following nine games, sliding to sixth place. By this point, Blackman had gradually been pushed out of the starting lineup, and in a 1-0 home loss to MK Dons, he was left as an unused substitute.

Clement was fired at this period, and Derby Academy Director Darren Wassall took charge until the end of the season.As the club’s goal shifted from automatic promotion to the play-offs, Harry Redknapp became their advisor.

During this time, Blackman became further isolated, appearing in only nine of Derby’s final 12 games, not even making the bench in a 1-0 East Midlands derby victory over Nottingham Forest.

Despite a terrible second half of the season, Derby reached the play-offs. However, a 3-0 home loss to Hull City in the first leg was too much to overcome in the return meeting. The Tigers won 3-2 on aggregate, with the Rams coming close before defeating Sheffield Wednesday 1-0 in the final.

In 2016/17, Blackman’s time at Derby came to an end quickly. Nigel Pearson had utilised the forward infrequently during his nine league games in charge. However, upon his dismissal, the multi-millionaire finally broke his silence.

In September 2016, Blackman scored his only Derby goal, a penalty in the 80th minute, resulting in a 2-0 victory over Cardiff City and lifting the club clear of relegation.

Blackman’s knee injury prevented him from adding to his Rams record. It wasn’t until the final game of the 2016/17 season that new manager Gary Rowett gave him a brief cameo. However, after failing to impress in a 1-1 draw at Rotherham United, his time at Derby was almost done.

The final stages for Blackman.

Four months after leaving Rotherham, Blackman played in the UEFA Europa League for Maccabi Tel Aviv, scoring the winning goal against Villarreal in a 1-0 victory.

His loan to the 2016/17 Ligat ha’Al runners-up rekindled his career. After a disappointing loan to Sporting Gijon in Spain, he secured a permanent move for the 2019/20 season with 10 goals in 31 league games.

After his transfer, his team won the Ligat ha’Al, allowing him to compete in the UEFA Champions League for the first time.

Three goals in the qualifying stages were insufficient to propel his team into the groups, and following an injury-plagued season, his impetus began to fade.

Blackman, aged 34, has been a free agent since leaving Tel Aviv at the end of the 2020/21 season, and appears to have retired for now. His Derby career paved the way for him to pursue opportunities abroad. However, his career was somewhat unimpressive, and he did not live up to the hoopla that surrounds him throughout his adolescence.

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