Despite reaching the 1997 FA Cup final in his first season with Middlesbrough, the club were relegated to the English First Division at the end of the season after a three-point deduction for failing to play a fixture. Beck stayed with the club and was an important part of the squad which won promotion to the Premier League the very next year. After 24 goals in 91 league matches for Middlesbrough, he moved to league rivals Derby County in March 1999 for £500,000. Beck failed to replicate the form he had shown with Boro; an indication of his lack of success at Derby was him being consistently voted in supporter's polls as the worst player ever to appear for Derby. He did however score a dramatic late equaliser in a 3-3 draw with Southampton in October 1999. Seeking playing time, Beck underwent loan deals to English lower league clubs. He signed a two-month loan deal to Nottingham Forest in November 1999, but after a month at the club, scoring once against Portsmouth, he was recalled by Derby, as the club experienced a lack of strikers. He made two substitute appearances back at Derby before Derby bought Belgian striker Branko Strupar and Beck was once more out of the team. He was then loaned out to QPR in February 2000 for three months. Despite good play for QPR, Beck was recalled in April 2000 in order to go on loan to Danish Superliga club Aalborg Boldspilklub (AaB) for the rest of the 1999–2000 Superliga season.