| Club: | Derby County |
| Season: | 1990–91 |
| Manager: | Arthur Cox |
| Chairman: | Robert Maxwell |
| Stadium: | Baseball Ground |
| League: | First Division |
| League Result: | 20th (relegated) |
| Cup1: | FA Cup |
| Cup1 Result: | Third round |
| Cup2: | League Cup |
| Cup2 Result: | Fourth round |
| Cup3: | Full Members Cup |
| Cup3 Result: | Quarter finals (Northern Area) |
| Cup4: | Player of the Year |
| Cup4 Result: | Dean Saunders |
| League Topscorer: | Dean Saunders (17) |
| Season Topscorer: | Dean Saunders (21) |
| Highest Attendance: | 21,729 vs Nottingham Forest (24 Nov 1990, First Division) |
| Lowest Attendance: | 7,270 vs Coventry City (19 Dec 1990, Full Members Cup) |
| Average Attendance: | 16,257 |
| Pattern La1: | _blackborder |
| Pattern B1: | _collarblack |
| Pattern Ra1: | _blackborder |
| Pattern So1: | _whitetop |
| Shorts1: | 000000 |
| Socks1: | 000000 |
| Prevseason: | 1989–90 |
| Nextseason: | 1991–92 |
During the 1990–91 English football season, Derby County F.C. competed in the Football League First Division.
In the 1990–91 season, the Rams endured an even worse season than the one before. Between December 1990 and April 1991, Derby went a club record 20 games without a win and equalled the worst ever home league defeat when they crashed 7–1 at home to Liverpool. Gates dropped to 11,000 from an opening match crowd of 18,011 against Sheffield United and the team looked a shadow of the one that had finished fifth two years before as they were relegated and finished bottom of the table with just 5 wins and 24 points from 38 games, a massive 13 points from safety.
See main article: 1990–91 Football League.
Derby County's score comes first[1]
| Win | Draw | Loss |
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 August 1990 | Chelsea | A | 1–2 | 24,652 | Saunders | |
| 29 August 1990 | Sheffield United | H | 1–1 | 18,011 | Saunders | |
| 1 September 1990 | Wimbledon | H | 1–1 | 12,469 | Saunders (pen) | |
| 8 September 1990 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 0–3 | 29,614 | ||
| 15 September 1990 | Aston Villa | H | 0–2 | 19,024 | ||
| 22 September 1990 | Norwich City | A | 1–2 | 13,258 | Patterson | |
| 29 September 1990 | Crystal Palace | H | 0–2 | 15,202 | ||
| 6 October 1990 | Liverpool | A | 0–2 | 37,076 | ||
| 20 October 1990 | Manchester City | H | 1–1 | 17,884 | Saunders | |
| 27 October 1990 | Southampton | A | 1–0 | 16,328 | Harford | |
| 3 November 1990 | Luton Town | H | 2–1 | 15,008 | Callaghan, Saunders (pen) | |
| 10 November 1990 | Manchester United | H | 0–0 | 21,115 | ||
| 17 November 1990 | Leeds United | A | 0–3 | 27,868 | ||
| 24 November 1990 | Nottingham Forest | H | 2–1 | 21,729 | Ramage, Saunders | |
| 1 December 1990 | Sunderland | A | 2–1 | 21,212 | Saunders, Harford | |
| 15 December 1990 | Chelsea | H | 4–6 | 15,057 | Hebberd, Micklewhite, Saunders (2) | |
| 23 December 1990 | Queens Park Rangers | H | 1–1 | 16,429 | Saunders | |
| 26 December 1990 | Arsenal | A | 0–3 | 25,538 | ||
| 29 December 1990 | Everton | A | 0–2 | 25,361 | ||
| 1 January 1991 | Coventry City | H | 1–1 | 15,741 | Harford | |
| 12 January 1991 | Wimbledon | A | 1–3 | 4,724 | Harford | |
| 20 January 1991 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 0–1 | 17,747 | ||
| 26 January 1991 | Sheffield United | A | 0–1 | 18,390 | ||
| 2 February 1991 | Aston Villa | A | 2–3 | 21,852 | Harford, Sage | |
| 23 February 1991 | Norwich City | H | 0–0 | 14,102 | ||
| 2 March 1991 | Sunderland | H | 3–3 | 16,027 | Saunders (3, 1 pen) | |
| 16 March 1991 | Crystal Palace | A | 1–2 | 14,752 | Micklewhite | |
| 23 March 1991 | Liverpool | H | 1–7 | 20,531 | Saunders | |
| 30 March 1991 | Arsenal | H | 0–2 | 18,397 | ||
| 1 April 1991 | Queens Park Rangers | A | 1–1 | 12,036 | Harford | |
| 10 April 1991 | Nottingham Forest | A | 0–1 | 25,109 | ||
| 13 April 1991 | Coventry City | A | 0–3 | 11,961 | ||
| 16 April 1991 | Manchester United | A | 1–3 | 32,776 | P Williams | |
| 20 April 1991 | Manchester City | A | 1–2 | 24,037 | Harford | |
| 23 April 1991 | Leeds United | H | 0–1 | 12,666 | ||
| 4 May 1991 | Southampton | H | 6–2 | 11,680 | Phillips, Saunders (2), P Williams (3, 1 pen) | |
| 8 May 1991 | Everton | H | 2–3 | 12,403 | Saunders, Harford (pen) | |
| 11 May 1991 | Luton Town | A | 0–2 | 12,889 |
See main article: 1990-91 FA Cup.
| R3 | 5 January 1991 | Newcastle United | A | 0–2 | 19,584 |
See main article: 1990-91 Football League Cup.
| R2 1st Leg | 26 September 1990 | Carlisle United | A | 1–1 | 7,628 | Saunders | |
| R2 2nd Leg | 10 October 1990 | Carlisle United | H | 1–0 (won 2–1 on agg) | 12,253 | Saunders | |
| R3 | 31 October 1990 | Sunderland | H | 6–0 | 16,422 | Harford (3), Bennett (own goal), Ramage (2) | |
| R4 | 28 November 1990 | Sheffield Wednesday | A | 1–1 | 25,649 | Saunders | |
| R4R | 12 December 1990 | Sheffield Wednesday | H | 1–2 | 17,050 | Micklewhite |
See main article: 1990-91 Full Members Cup.
| NR2 | 19 December 1990 | Coventry City | H | 1–0 | 7,270 | Callaghan | |
| NQF | 22 January 1991 | Leeds United | A | 1–2 | 6,642 | Saunders |
| Date | Pos | Name | To | Fee | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 July 1990 | DF | Paul Blades | Norwich City | £700,000 | |
| 7 February 1991 | GK | Scott Cooksey | Shrewsbury Town | Free transfer | |
| 21 February 1991 | FW | Kevin Francis | Stockport County | £45,000 |
Transfers in: £0
Transfers out: £745,000
Total spending: £745,000