Derby County Vs Nottingham Forest
Sunday 5th February 2012, 12:15pm
npower Championship
There's not only three points, but also local bragging rights up for grabs this weekend when Derby County welcome East Midlands rivals Nottingham Forest to Pride Park Stadium.
The Rams and the Reds will go head-to-head before a packed Pride Park on Sunday in front of the nation, with the game being selected for live television coverage by BBC Sport.
For Derby, a win would see Nigel Clough's men complete a seasonal double over Forest. That hasn't been achieved since their title-winning season of the 1971-72 season in the First Division under the leadership of Brian Clough.
From a Forest standpoint, the Reds have tasted defeat in each of their last four matches and are five points adrift of safety in the npower Championships' drop zone. Manager Steve Cotterill and his team will be eager to pick up a confidence-boosting win to launch a charge towards safety with 18 games left to play.
In dcfc.co.uk's Match Preview we look ahead to Sunday's showdown at Pride Park.
Derby County Team News
Former Forest striker Nathan Tyson is in line to make his first start of 2012 after impressing in two recent substitute appearances against Stoke City and Barnsley. The summer signing from across the A52 has made only two starts in Derby colours and has been sidelined for the majority of the season with a groin injury, but hopes his problems are now behind him.
Top scorer Theo Robinson is still struggling with the calf complaint that he picked up at Burnley two weeks ago but the frontman will be given as long as possible to prove his fitness.
Paul Green will return to the squad after sitting out the 3-2 loss at Barnsley following speculation about his future, but the transfer window closed in midweek with the Republic of Ireland midfielder still a Derby player.
Steven Davies could return to the matchday squad after playing for the Rams' reserves for the third time in three weeks in midweek after recovering from a fractured skull.
Irish duo Mark O'Brien (cruciate ligament) and goalkeeper Saul Deeney (shoulder) are the only players certainly ruled out.
Nottingham Forest Team News
Defender Luke Chambers is available again after the Reds' captain completed a three-match suspension for the red card he received during the home loss to Southampton during their midweek defeat to Burnley.
Manager Steve Cotterill is set to hand debuts to new loan signings Danny Higginbotham and Scott Wootton after they arrived on loan from Stoke City and Manchester United before the closure of the transfer window, with Greg Cunningham (hamstring) ruled out and Brendan Moloney (thigh) doubtful.
Cotterill could shuffle his pack after Forest tasted defeat to his former club Burnley with a 2-0 home defeat, and with Dexter Blackstock, Marlon Harewood and ex-Ram Marcus Tudgay all on the bench against the Clarets he could hand any of the trio a start to provide fresh impetus up front.
Chris Cohen remains out of action for the rest of the season after picking up a serious knee injury against Derby in September at the City Ground.
We said....
Manager Nigel Clough: "We'll be doing our utmost to put on a performance and try and get a positive result but it won't be easy against Forest, who have brought in three fresh faces this week, and it would be a grave mistake to underestimate how hard we'll have to work to get something out of the match.
"Forest's recent fortunes and form will count for very little on Sunday and we all know form can go out the window on occasions like this one. Although their manager has changed since we last met the players remain pretty much the same and they will be desperate to make amends for losing that game in September - just like we were when we travelled to the City Ground off the back of two disappointing defeats last season."
They said....
Chairman Frank Clark: "Any win would be good to get us going again now, but it would be doubly sweet if it came against Derby.
"I know Derby is the big game for our supporters, I understand that.
"I hesitate to use the word enemy, when we are talking about two football clubs. But this is the big derby for us and getting a win could kick-start our season.
"The players are suffering a crisis of confidence. But there are 18 games left and a lot of points to play for.
"I am convinced that, if we can just get a win, it will gee us up."
Keep An Eye On....Lewis McGugan
Forest Academy product Lewis McGugan is nearing 200 career appearances for the Reds after signing professional forms in 2006.
The midfielder has been a regular source of goals in recent seasons and has an eye for a spectacular strike, as he proved with his latest stunning strike against West Ham United in January.
He has scored 36 career goals - including five this season - and at 23 years of age the Reds will feel his best years are still ahead of him in a Forest shirt.
With 39 shots on target and 32 off, it's clear to see he is a midfielder with an eye for a goal.
The Man In The Middle
Essex-based official Andy D'Urso will oversee proceedings at Pride Park on Sunday.
D'Urso, a former Premier League referee, has been in charge of 27 games this season.
He has shown 77 yellows and four reds so far this term and his last Derby game was in December when the Rams drew 1-1 at Crystal Palace. His last Pride Park game was the 1-0 home defeat to Hull City last season.
Ticket Information
Sunday's game is a PLATINUM PLUS category fixture and a small number of tickets are available, but with a sell-out crowd expected it is advised to buy as early as possible.
Prices start from £31 for adults, £19.50 for senior citizens and young adults and £14.50 for under-18s.
Fans are advised to buy in advance because prices increase on the day of the game and full ticket details can be found by logging on to WeAreDerby.com.
Fancy A Flutter
Coral, the official betting and gaming partner of dcfc.co.uk, are offering odds of 5/4 for a Derby County win at Pride Park.
Striker Jamie Ward opened his account for the season at the City Ground against Forest in September and the odds of him hitting the net during the 90 minutes this time around are 6/4.
Jeff Hendrick, who scored his first career goal against Forest, is priced at 14/1 to score the last goal of the game.
A draw is offering odds of 11/5 and Coral are also offering odds of 9/4 for a Nottingham Forest win.
More odds on the game and all this weekend's matches are available at http://www.coral.co.uk/fli/derby-county.
