The club broke the British transfer record with the signing of half-back David Nish, from Midland rivals Leicester City, for £225,000.

Derby County were unable to retain their title and finished in 7th place, one point off qualification for the UEFA Cup.

This slump was in part due to the club's poor away form, winning only four matches away from home all season – one of the matches lost was a 5–0 defeat at Leeds United, the loss only serving to intensify the rivalry between Clough and United manager Don Revie.

The club had better success in the European Cup, reaching the semi-finals before being knocked out by Juventus: Clough accused the Bianconeri of bribing the match officials — describing the Italians as "cheating bastards" at the end of the first leg match in Turin —,[1] despite they will prove later unrelated to any attempt to combine.

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