Mel Morris? Wycombe Wanderers? The EFL? Who is to blame for the mess Derby County are currently in?

A week after Gary Neville’s comments live on Sky Sports where he said that Wycombe Wanderers should ‘stand down’ to save the Rams, many Chairboys supporters took aim at the former Premier League right-back’s comments, and rightly so.

A club have missed a year of Championship football due to another club's wrongdoings.

But before we get into what we did today [January 28], let us remind ourselves of the situation.

Last season, Derby avoided relegation into League One at Wycombe’s expenses by one place and one point.

READ MORE: BFP reporters head to Derby to ask the public about the Wycombe/ Rams debacle - live

This was on top of the Derbyshire-based club breaching the EFL’s Financial Fair Play rules.

And after much waiting for both teams, the punishment for this crime was a 21-point deduction for not just disobeying the regulations, but also for entering administration.

However, this was enforced the season AFTER the regulations were breached, hence Wycombe’s case.

Many Derby fans on social media have pointed some of the club’s demise towards the Adams Park outfit who believe the legal case is prolonging the club in being saved from a new buyer.

Wanderers on the other hand don't want to see Derby die, but, believe consequences need to be met for breaching rules that all the teams need to adhere to.

READ MORE: EFL address Wycombe's legal claims against Derby County

So, on January 28, myself, and our new community news reporter in Noora Mykkanen, decided to head up to the M1 and speak to fans outside Pride Park on the current situation.

And, it was fair to say that the reaction was mixed and in a refreshing way, many did not hold anything against the Chairboys.

Many sympathised with the boys from Bucks as some believe they have been dragged into Derby’s mess.

One fan we spoke to, Paco, said: “The point of the blame should be on EFL because they run the league, Derby and Wycombe and I don’t particularly think it's their fault.

“If the EFL did their job properly, the books and finances, everything would be running smoothly.

“I feel for Wycombe.

READ MORE: Following the success at Flackwell, are Non League crowds on the rise in Buckinghamshire?

“If the EFL did do a proper job they would still be in the Championship, they’ve got a good fan base.

“I thought they did quite well last year, it’s just unfortunate that they haven’t got the big budget.

“I wouldn’t blame Derby personally.

"I would blame the people who are in charge in the league.

"They need to do something more efficient to make sure things run smoothly.”

The off-field drama between the two clubs continued into the summer as the EFL revealed that two fixture lists for the current season would be published, as they deliberated the fate of Wycombe and Derby due to the latter’s terrible mismanagement.

The EFL were undecided on whether to reinstate Wanderers back into the Championship at Derby’s expense.

Ultimately, it was decided that both clubs would stay in their respected leagues for this season, but the Rams would have a points deduction.

Another Rams fan, Tracey, a solicitor from the city who has watched Derby for over 40 years said: “It does feel like we’ve been punished enough already.

“The fans are being punished instead of the people who should be.

READ MORE: 'They have to stand down' - Gary Neville begs Wycombe to drop legal case against Derby

"On Wycombe’s demands, I sort of understand."

On the topic of Derby being liquidated, she continued: “It would affect me mentally if they went.

“It was my dad who started taking me when I was 10 years old.

“I’m a season ticket holder.

“It’s part of my life, what would I do on the weekends if I didn’t go to games.”

“I can see why they’re doing it, if the shoe was in the other foot.

“Collectively we blame the EFL, they’ve put us in this situation and they’re not accountable.

“That’s what’s going to happen, there’s not going to be enough teams soon.

“Fans are going to shout about it because they need someone to blame."

And on the interview that the Wycombe owner, Rob Couhig, did on BBC Radio Derby, she continued: “The chairman of Wycombe came off quite well and eloquent.

“Online, the Middlesbrough fans are flying at us, unlike the Wycombe fans who have been civilised.”

“Maybe this all will benefit in the long run because something needs to be done.”

Another fan, Michael, who has been a Derby fan for more than 60 years said: “It’s too political, it’s more than Wycombe.

READ MORE: Wycombe described as 'scapegoats' in Middlesbrough's open letter to Derby's joint administrators

“It’s a lot to do with the EFL, they’re killing football.

“Technically, it’s Mel Morris who got us in this mess.

"He should pay whatever is owed.

"I don’t think Derby deserves to fall for something Mel Morris did.

“I just feel they [Wycombe] keep going on and on about it instead of saving it until Derby is safe.

“It’s gone too far. Just let it drop and let us survive.”

Others described the situation as a mess, disgusting, whilst others pleaded with Wycombe to drop the case to ‘save the club.’

One fan even said, ‘well, why didn’t Wycombe get more points to avoid all this?’

Whether or not you are 'for Derby' or 'for Wycombe', this is a sorry state of affairs that has two victims: Wycombe Wanderers FC and the fans of Derby County.

And despite their off-field problems, more than 30,000 people are expected to be at Pride Park for their next fixture against Birmingham City on January 30, whilst Wycombe are going strong in League One.