After a spectacular dismantling of Bristol City a fortnight ago, Derby County kept the good times rolling with a 1-0 victory over bottom club Cardiff City.
Paul Warne named an unchanged side featuring three former Cardiff players in Ebou Adams, Curtis Nelson and Nathaniel Mendez-Laing. His side were further boosted by Deadline Day signings Marcus Harness and Nathaniel Phillips (also formerly of Cardiff) taking their places on the bench alongside Ben Osborn, returning from injury after a three-game absence.
For under pressure Cardiff boss Erol Bulut, things weren’t as rosy. The former Fenerbahce boss made six changes as he looked to revitalise his struggling side.
After a minute’s applause in memory of former Cardiff captain Sol Bamba who recently passed away aged just 39, the game got underway, and at some pace.
Following a couple of early Ebou Adams pot-shots, the first real chance came after ten minutes. Rubin Colwill forced a save out of Jacob Zetterstrom, from which Derby countered through Nathaniel Mendez-Laing down the left and Kayden Jackson went close.
Derby took the lead in the 28th minute, Kenzo Goudmijn exhibiting some exquisite number ten play. The ball was thrown in to Jerry Yates who returned it to Callum Elder with a wonderful flick. His low delivery went by two defenders, was leapt over by Jackson and met by the arriving Goudmijn who found the bottom right corner with his left foot. It was a great move, capped off by a single deft touch from the Dutch midfielder, timing his run perfectly for his second goal in as many games.
The visitors’ best chance of the half came from a corner five minutes later, off a Derby head. Fortunately for Eiran Cashin, Jacob Zetterstrom was on hand with a good reflex save to stop a header which had looked to be on a perfect trajectory to sneak in at the near post.
Callum Elder was not far away when he flashed a cross in following a one-two from a corner, but no-one was at the back post to meet it.
Jerry Yates caught the eye once more in the 45th minute. In a right back position following a Cardiff free kick, the striker played a delightful 70-yard cross-field pass to Mendez-Laing in the inside left channel. The captain drove inside past Joe Ralls and unleashed a low shot from just inside the box, which Alnwick got his fingertips to.
The second half got off to a bad start for Derby, Paul Warne forced into an early substitution when David Ozoh went down with a hamstring issue. Ben Osborn came on to replace him, the Rams’ midfield shape altered with Osborn and Goudmijn playing as eights with Ebou Adams, who was already walking a tightrope after an early booking, the holding midfielder.
Eiran Cashin made another unforced error when he won Cardiff a corner with a backpass from within the Bluebirds’ half in a baffling moment, but Zettrstrom was there to deal with the resulting set piece.
Jerry Yates carved out another chance in the 67th minute, with another brilliant flick. The ball having been fed to him by Mendez-Laing, Yates flicked it into Jackson on the right-hand side of the box, but his effort was saved at the near post by Alnwick. Derby looked to recycle the ball, but play was soon stopped after a collision between Cardiff skipper Joe Ralls and Derby’s Mendez-Laing. The Guatemalan international then made way for debutant Marcus Harness.
Cardiff’s chance creation was summarised by an effort from substitute Ollie Tanner, whose cross-cum-shot from a tight angle on the right sailed behind the goal and into the North Stand.
Paul Warne made two more changes with nine minutes to play, Nat Phillips making his debut as Derby dropped into a deep 5-3-2, allowing Cardiff to play in front of them. The closing stages were nervy, as Derby clung onto their lead into seven minutes of stoppage time, which culminated in a chance for Ebou Adams.
As Cardiff piled on late pressure, Zetterstrom was required to punch Ryan Nyambe’s defensive header wide for a corner, from which Jackson smashed the ball away as far as Adams. The former Bluebird surged forward past Manolis Siopis who was the only player in blue inside his own half, and then beat goalkeeper Jak Alnwick in the air. 40 yards away from an open goal, he continued to drive down the inside left channel before opting to shoot from 15 yards and somehow dragging it wide.
It was probably the worst miss Pride Park has ever seen - almost cringeworthy - and the midfielder knew it as he fell to the floor in disbelief. However, it would not matter, with head coach Paul Warne able to joke about it at full time.
Analysis: Pride Park remains a fortress, but Cashin looks shaky.
The Rams are on their best winning run in almost half a century, with nine consecutive league victories. Pride Park has never seen such form. It’s a remarkable achievement and could be crucial to Paul Warne’s side this season.
Cast your mind back to Derby’s last Championship campaign. Of course, it was marred by administration as the club were hit with a 21-point deduction, but if it wasn’t for that, the side that were then under the stewardship of Wayne Rooney would have amassed enough points to stay up. Despite winning just three times on the road, they earned 40 points on home turf, a figure that rivals teams in the top half of the table.
The recent success of the Rams at Pride Park is clearly built on solid defensive foundations, with Derby having not conceded a goal in their last seven home league games. In this context, Eiran Cashin’s poor performance is a particular cause for concern. Last time out against Bristol City, the number six looked back to his best. But there were a calamity of errors in his display against Cardiff which will have left the likes of Nat Phillips licking his lips.
But barring Ebou Adams’ late miss, there weren’t really any other stains on Derby’s performance. Zetterstrom was excellent yet again, and looks as though he’ll be wort every penny, whilst Ryan Nyambe was rock solid again and Callum Elder’s fine form continues. The Australian left back defended brilliantly against Anwar El Ghazi, who has a wealth of top flight experience across Europe, and also picked up his first assist of the season.
David Ozoh could be out until the international break and will be a big loss in the middle of the park. The Crystal Palace loanee has shown his excellent ball-progressing abilities whilst also imposing himself on games with power. These attributes, work rate and ability to play both as a holding midfielder, or in a more box-to-box role, will be missed. However, the midfield options available to Warne are strong, with Adams also possessing power and work rate, as does Ben Osborn, whilst combining it with real nous and a killer delivery. Kenzo Goudmijn is really starting to shine now too.
Going forward, the big thing for Derby to work on must be bringing Jerry Yates into the game more consistently. The number 10 has led the line with fabulous hold up play and is always making things happen. He created the most chances in the match (three) whilst having the least touches of any outfield player to play 90 minutes (21). After a tough year in south Wales, Yates has found his feet again. Feed him and he will cause problems for the opposition defence.
Derby (4-2-3-1): Zetterström (GK); Nyambe, Nelson, Cashin, Elder (Forsyth 81’); Ozoh (Osborn 50’), Adams; Jackson, Goudmijn (Phillips 81’), Mendez-Laing (C) (Harness 69’); Yates.
Substitutes not used: Vickers (GK), Ward, Bradley, Brown, Collins.
Cardiff (4-2-3-1): Alnwick (GK); NG (Fish 46’), Chambers, Goutas, Bagan (Tanner 62’); Ralls (C) (Robertson 69’), Siopis; Colwill, O’Dowda, El Ghazi (Willock 62’); Kanga (Ashford 69’).
Substitutes not used: Horvath (GK), Rinomhota, Turnbull, Reindorf.
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