Former Derby County chairman Adam Pearson has heaped praise on Aston Villa's American supremo Randy Lerner.
Pearson is now working with Derby's new American owners and told the Sunday Mercury: "I think Randy has gone about it in such a good way.
"He's put a lot of money in as well, which helps, and he's recruited a first-rate manager - which is what I believe we have done here.
"We would like to follow that model and do things in a nice calm, steady way and have, hopefully, a year or two years to build a successful team - which is what has happened at Aston Villa.
"I think they stand out as being a well-run club, having been a club that hadn't really taken it forward for a long time.
"Then, all of a sudden, they had the American investment and there's been quite a spike in its development and improvement and that goes with good management on and off the pitch.
"You don't hear a lot from Randy but I think that's a very good sign - hopefully it's something we will get to at Derby because that usually means you are winning football matches."
