Millwall signed Alex Pearce on loan during the January transfer window.
Derby County midfielder George Evans has claimed he is more than capable of playing at centre-back after doubts were raised over Alex Pearce’s departure to Millwall on loan, the Derby Telegraph reports.
“I’ve played at centre-back a bit in my career so far, so if the manager wants me to do that, I’m more than happy to do so,” Evans explained to the Derby Telegraph.
“I played a bit at (Manchester) City in the youth team coming up. Then I went to Reading and sometimes they played a three at the back, and I played in the middle of a three, or right side of a three sometimes.”
Derby are currently down to the bare bones at central defence, with first-team regulars Richard Keogh and Fikayo Tomori having very little back-up.
Manager Frank Lampard allowed Alex Pearce to join Millwall on loan in January; a decision that raised plenty of questions from supporters considering the obvious lack of depth there.
Lampard then went on to tell the BBC how signing a new centre-back before the January 31 deadline day was a priority, claiming a failure to do so could halt the Rams’ momentum in their push for promotion – strange comments to make after Pearce’s move to the Lions.
Derby did manage to add before the deadline, but only in midfield as Andy King arrived on loan from Leicester City.
The East Midlands club now must continue with only two fit senior centre-backs on the books, yet Evans’ comments suggest he could be Lampard’s Plan B should Keogh or Tomori pick up an injury or suspension.
Evans was signed from Reading in the summer and is predominantly a holding midfielder. He has managed to establish himself in the first-team ahead of Tom Huddlestone over the past month.
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