Looking to earn their first win under the stewardship of a new head coach, Derby County will welcome playoff hopefuls Millwall to Pride Park on Saturday afternoon in the Championship.
The Rams suffered a heavy defeat at the home of Queens Park Rangers last time out in front of the TV cameras, whilst the Lions shared the spoils with Preston North End earlier in the week.
Match preview
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Since the narrow Boxing Day victory over managerless West Bromwich Albion in the Championship, Derby have endured an 11-game winless streak across all competitions, bringing an abrupt end to the tenure of Paul Warne, who was finally replaced by John Eustace at the beginning of last week.
The former Birmingham City boss decided to swap a top-six charge at Blackburn Rovers for the stress and strain of a second-tier relegation battle in the East Midlands, with the Rams suffering a sobering four-goal defeat during the 45-year-old's maiden match at the helm against QPR.
Aiming to produce a better display following their heaviest loss of the 2024-25 campaign last time out, Derby are currently languishing down in 22nd place in the Championship standings, a single point and position behind Ruben Selles's Hull City in the relative safety of 21st.
Winning six of their 16 second-tier contests at Pride Park, the Rams are hardly sensational on their own patch but must take confidence from the fact that both of their Championship successes since early November have arrived in front of their home faithful in the East Midlands.
Finding the net in just two of their last seven league matches, Saturday's hosts Derby have made an attacking move in the free agent market following the conclusion of the winter transfer window, with former Rangers and Leeds United striker Kemar Roofe joining until the end of the season.
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A little further into his current assignment than Derby boss Eustace, Alex Neil has experienced mixed opening weeks at Millwall, who have enjoyed a four-game winning streak before going three Championship matches without the sweet taste of success ahead of this weekend's trip to the Midlands.
After an embarrassing 5-1 defeat at the base of relegation-threatened Plymouth Argyle on February 12, the Lions have steadied the ship slightly, securing back-to-back 1-1 draws against West Brom last weekend and during an attritional trip to Preston on Tuesday night.
A real threat for Millwall in attack since arriving from his homeland over the summer, Mihailo Ivanovic opened the scoring at Deepdale for the visitors last time out - bagging his fifth second-tier goal of the season - before the Lilywhites restored parity in the contest through towering Dane Emil Riis Jakobsen.
Earning just two points from their last three second-tier battles, Millwall have missed plenty of opportunities to close the ever-increasing gap between themselves and a coveted playoff spot, with Neil's troops sitting in 14th place, six points behind the top six at this stage.
The Lions have struggled to post regular wins on the road this campaign - winning just three of their 16 Championship outings to date - but the London-based club took a major scalp on their travels in the FA Cup earlier this month, beating second-tier leaders Leeds 2-0 at Elland Road.
Team News
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Derby remain without the services of midfielder Corey Blackett-Taylor, who suffered a hamstring injury during the defeat at Cardiff City last month.
The Rams were also dealt a major fitness blow in January, with key centre-back Curtis Nelson now sidelined for the remainder of the term due to a knee issue.
Adding to the hamstring woes in the East Midlands, Derby youngster Dajaune Brown is expected back in action at the start of March from a strain.
After last featuring for Millwall in late November, Middlesbrough loanee Josh Coburn made his long-awaited return to the pitch during the Preston match on Tuesday.
The 22-year-old could be promoted to the starting XI for the trip to the East Midlands, although fellow attacker Calum Scanlon (hamstring) will be unavailable.
Derby County possible starting lineup:
Zetterstrom; Nyambe, Clarke, Langas, Elder; Adams, Osborn, Yates, Goudmijn, Mendez-Laing; Barkhuizen
Millwall possible starting lineup:
Jensen; Crama, Tanganga, Cooper, Byran; De Norre, Mitchell, Coburn, Cundle, Azeez; Ivanovic
We say: Derby County 1-0 Millwall
With their winless run close to hitting the two-month mark, Derby will be desperate to put on a positive showing during Eustace's debut in the dugout at Pride Park.
The Rams have been fairly good in the East Midlands this season, so we are backing them to narrowly edge past the attentions of Millwall on Saturday.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Carter White
