St Andrew’s Knighthead Park, 2025-12-26 13:30
Happy continuation of Christmas!! Classic Boxing-day offers a trip to England’s second city and a meeting at St Andrews against Birmingham City for Derby’s players and supporters.
If we are first to clean up Saturday’s disappointment in the home meeting against Portsmouth. It was, in my eyes, a miserable effort against a weak Portsmouth, a team with the worst away record in The Championship. The number of mispasses was astonishing, especially in decisive situations.
When we got behind at the start of the game, we supporters knew where it was going. It was only to hope for a point because the belief in three was put away. There is a saying, “it’s in the walls”. In a way, that’s true. We have not turned a deficit into victory since January 27, 2024, when against Cheltenham Town in League One. In The Championship, it was that far back since April 2022 in a home game against Fulham and then with the help of an own goal.
Then it’s just for us supporters to accept that every manager/head coach has their favorite players that they are happy to take with them to a new club. We have to live with it. With a manager other than John Eustace, we would definitely not have been “Blackburn Södra” but something else where we supporters probably had countless views on certain players. Just remember when we were “Little Rotherham” under Paul Warne.
If we forget the legitimate views we have about certain players, there has been one thing this season that has bothered me, the final phase of the match and how we handled it at times. When we have to defend leads or a draw, the ability to have a game for it is usually missing. Likewise, I’ve rarely seen a Derby let off the handbrake and chase a target. If we look at Saturday’s game, there was a lot of fumbling with the ball in midfield in the closing stages instead of many players in the penalty area getting a well-aimed cross. Is it a lack of confidence, knowledge, etc?
Within a week we will have players with injury concerns back. First in line should be Lewis Travis and Max Johnston. That the favorite Travis pokes one of today’s midfielders is clear. Johnston’s replacement Joe Ward has been one of the best players in the last month with both goals and assists. Can Ward replace Brereton Diaz in a three-man offense?
We supporters can have many opinions on Eustace’s starting eleven, substitutions, etc. but for my part, I am convinced that he is the man to take us in the right direction in English football. The club’s ambitions, as David Clowes made clear this week, are a return and establishment in the Premier League. Eustace will be one of the keys I think along with new investors that Clowes opened up to.
So this year, it’s always tight with matches and the question is whether Eustace will start rotating his starting eleven. Against Birmingham City, the loanee from that club, Dion Sanderson, will not be available. Whether it is a four-back line or Eustace chooses to bring in Curtis Nelson, the favorite Danny Batth is another name.
Birmingham is one of the series’ best home teams with only one loss. Most recently, however, it was only shared points against Charlton Athletic. Derby is just the opposite, if we had only played home games, relegation would have been close. The strength of our guys is the away game with four wins in the last five. Can we add another one on Boxing Day?
Possible starting eleven;
Zetterström
Langås – Nelson – Clarke
Ward– Thompson – Clark- Elder
Brereton Diaz – Brewster – Agyemang
