Tactical tweaks and bouncebackability: Murkin announces himself in comeback win over Blackburn

Whether it was the tussle between Adam Forshaw and Sam Szmodics, or when Rams captain Lewis Travis “let himself down” with what John Eustace called a “ridiculous” yellow card, their reacquaintance with Blackburn was inevitably fiery.

For Ben Brereton Díaz, Dion Sanderson, Sam Szmodics and chiefly former Rovers skipper Travis, it was akin to welcoming your dysfunctional, now-disowned family to your new abode. Even with some their favourite sons back in their corner, the same was true for Eustace and his staff too, a year after facing Sanderson and Travis at Pride Park.

 “Maybe the emotion of the game got to one or two of the players and that that caused us an issue” The Rams’ boss said when discussing a scrappy first half.

Derby were limited to an early chance for Brereton Díaz on the right, and a good one for Patrick Agyemang who broke down the opposite flank before also being denied by Balázs Tóth. But even with Carlton Morris starting for the first time since November, they created little, struggling to hold onto the ball.

The same could largely be said of a more dominant Blackburn side, though they would deserve their half-time lead. In fact, Rovers really should have been in front through Yūki Ōhashi, who fired across goal and agonisingly wide inside 20 minutes after Travis gifted him the ball.

And frustration at Travis’ needless stoppage-time booking, for pulling down Ohashi no less, was compounded when Yuri Ribeiro clipped the resulting free-kick onto Hayden Carter’s head and he found the bottom-left-corner.

At the break, the focus of the away end’s relentless teasing shifted away from Eustace to their former skipper. A reprieve for the man in the Derby dugout, who had his work cut out if The Rams were to come from behind to win for the first time in his tenure.

So came an apology from Travis to the Derby dressing room and some tactical changes. Derry Murkin moved into a more advanced role from wing back, and there were tweaks to the roles of Szmodics and Bobby Clark too.

Eustace explained: “We took a bit of a risk today playing Carlton [Morris] and Patrick [Agyemang] on the left. But to make that work, we had to get the fullback [Murkin] higher and in the first half, he wasn't.

“We adapted [in the] second half, we wanted to be a bit more on the front foot in certain areas. We adapted Clark and Szmodics’ positions to get on the ball and make us play more.”

With Travis dropping to join the backline and cover Murkin at left back, and Ward forward-thinking down the right, The Rams effectively played with two wing backs, two attack-minded central midfielders and a front three of Brereton Díaz and Agyemang attacking ahead of Morris (and then Brewster) who would drop in to link play before making a late run back into the box to meet crosses.

The first-half in-possession shape had seen similar movement from Travis, but with Szmodics more of a number 10, Clark was isolated in the middle and Agyemang’s threat was limited, unable to drift inside. Crucially, even while being more attacking, the 3-2-5 gave Derby a link in the midfield third, be that in the centre or through the wing backs who rotated in bombing forward – Ward somewhat more restrained in his attacking runs.

After an early scare, when Andri Guðjohnsen fired wide from close range following a free kick, it was all Derby. Playing with refreshed attacking vigour, Agyemang and Szmodics both shot off target before Brereton Díaz found the equaliser.

The Rams showed good attacking movement as they shifted the ball from right to left on the edge of the box. Murkin then burst to the byline and intelligently pulled it back to the Chile international who found the bottom-left corner.

It had to be a former Blackburn man (admittedly it was a four in eleven chance).

Buoyed by the leveller, Derby were now in full flow. With their wide men given licence to run at their markers and their midfielders freedom to roam in pockets, chances followed. Murkin’s 25-yard free-kick was just too high, before Joe Ward twice volleyed wide at the back post and Agyemang headed a cross from the right back over.

The second goal was a matter of when, not if, and it came with 16 minutes to play. Following a clever free kick routine down the left with Murkin and Clark, Brewster whipped the ball into Agyemang, whose header was wayward. But the quick-thinking Szmodics pulled the ball back across goal for Matt Clarke who arrived to bundle the ball in from four-yards-out.

And any nerves about holding on vanished when Brewster headed home a third in the 82^nd minute. Agyemang rode a challenge before Clark hit the ball left to Murkin. He drove forward again and crossed onto the head of Derby’s number ten who scored his third goal in as many home games.

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It was a hugely significant win for The Rams, who have now bettered their points tally of 50 from last season. They remain six points behind sixth-place Wrexham but have moved up to eighth. And Eustace remained coy but optimistic about his side’s next target.

He said: “I think we’ve got to enjoy the last 11 games now. You know, we're not content being on 51 points.”

While a loss would have seen them register three consecutive defeats for the first time since Eustace’s opening three games after bruising trips to fellow play-off hopefuls Watford and Hull, instead this was the perfect response.

The Rams’ head coach rightly said, “I think we’ve bounced back a lot this season”. Certainly, from one game to the next, from injury blows and a tough first ten games. But in coming from behind to win, it feels like they’ve got a monkey off their backs.

Morris is starting again, Murkin has made a big impact already and a better balance between Clark and Szmodics has seemingly been found, there are signs that Eustace may be starting to find a way to fit his best players together post-January.

The final eleven games, he told me, will be vital in building partnerships and understanding between players and achieving the right balance in a hopefully more settled team.

The second half, in my view, was probably Derby’s best at home all season. But it was just 45 minutes. Now the real test comes: can they build on this to play with further fluidity and freedom going forward?

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Goals: Brereton Díaz 55’, Clarke 74’, Brewster 82’ | Carter 45+1’

Derby (4-2-3-1): Vickers (GK); Ward Sanderson, Clarke, Murkin (Forsyth 87’); Clark (Fraulo 87’), Travis (C); Brereton Díaz, Szmodics (Ozoh 80’), Agyemang; Morris (Brewster 62’).

Unused Substitutes: O’Donnell (GK); Gordon; Banel, Eames, Allen.

Blackburn (3-4-2-1): Toth (GK); Carter (De Neve 80’), McLoughlin (C), Cashin; Alebiosu, Forshaw (Montgomery 56’), Baradji (Gardner-Hickman), Ribeiro (Pickering 69’); Morishita, Ohashi; Gudjohnsen (Jørgensen 69’).

Unused Substitutes: Michalski (GK); O’Riordan, Atcheson; Afolayan.