"We could have lost him for the season. We think there is a problem in one of his knees, we will know more later but if we have lost a player we have not lost a person.
"We have been looking for this victory because in the last five games we have been unlucky not to win three of them.
"When you lose in the 120th minute it is not easy to deal with but my players answered that very well today.
"We showed a lot of personality to come here and control the game. We played so well it means the hard work we have been doing is coming off and I am delighted to get my first away win."
New Derby boss Nigel Clough can now see the task he has ahead of him to lift the club.
"We started quite brightly but we were in possession both times for the two goals we conceded.
"You can only do so much to get a positive feeling around the place but when that first goal goes in everything reverts to type and that's something we have to deal with.
"A few players were below par and people didn't do their jobs.
"The strikers didn't hold the ball up and the wide men didn't get crosses in, the sort of things we got used to at our previous club (Burton Albion).
"There were not too many positives to come out of this apart from to highlight and emphasise the problems.
"We want a more positive attitude on the pitch. There were not too many people looking to go forward, we are at home in front of 28,000 people so let's get on the front foot."