Derby County have been handed a huge financial blow following the EFL's verdict regarding Richard Keogh's compensation claim.

What's the latest?

According to a report by The Guardian, Derby will have to pay their former defender £2.3 million after the 34-year-old won both of his appeals to the EFL's Player Related Dispute Commission and the League Appeals' Committee regarding his unfair dismissal by Derby for gross misconduct.

An EFL statement read: "The LAC has heard and dismissed an appeal under the regulations of the EFL by Derby against the decision of the PRDC in the case of Richard Keogh. The PDRC held that Mr Keogh had not committed gross misconduct, that he had not brought the club into serious disrepute and that he had been wrongly dismissed by the club."

Morris disaster

The news regarding Keogh is the latest in a series of blows that fans of Derby have seen their side endure this season, with the club having a miserable Championship campaign on the pitch, seeing the proposed takeover by the Bin Zayed International group fall through and witnessing a second takeover attempt, this time by Spanish football agent Erik Alonso, appearing to also be on the brink of collapse.

Furthermore, it has also been reported that Mel Morris is personally paying the Derby County playing staff's £1.2 million monthly wages as a result of the club's dire financial situation.

As such, the fact that the club now owe Keogh a further £2.3 million due to his unfair dismissal is only going to cause more disruption to the running of the Rams - and is something that is likely to leave Wayne Rooney livid, as the money paid to the defender - which is due to a direct result of Morris' error of judgement - could have been spent on improving the 35-year-old's squad in the summer transfer window.

All in all, it really has been a miserable season for the Pride Park faithful, who will surely be hoping that their club can sort themselves out in the boardroom, which, in turn, could help the side get back on track on the pitch - although this seems a long way off as things currently stand.

In other news: Alan Nixon delivers encouraging Derby County update, fans will surely be buzzing - opinion