Rams Wait On Roberts

Defender a doubt to face Brighton with tight hamstring.

Left-back Gareth Roberts is a Derby County injury concern going into Saturday’s Pride Park clash with Brighton & Hove Albion.

The 34-year-old former Wales international was replaced in the latter stages of Derby’s 2-2 draw at Middlesbrough on Wednesday evening with a tight hamstring.

Roberts has started all ten of Derby’s league and cup fixtures so far this season, but is a doubt ahead of the visit of the Seagulls so James O’Connor is on standby to step in.

He said: “Gareth is a doubt; he felt his hamstring late on at Middlesbrough after changing direction.

“We didn’t want to take any risks with him so we got him off as quickly as we could.

“We’ll see how it settles down in the next 24 hours or so but we do have a reliable replacement in James O’Connor to step in if required.

“We’ve got cover beyond that in Michael Hoganson and also Kieron Freeman, so we do have a team below the team which is a big benefit of the Under 21 team.”

Saturday’s clash with Guy Poyet’s men will be Derby’s third in six days and Clough added: “We’ve got a few knocks and niggles in the squad, as you’d expect.

“Playing on Wednesday means we’ve not had too much time to get out on the training ground again, and this is very much one of those occasions where the whole squad comes into play.

“We’ve already seen the value of having a squad in the opening months of the season and it’s the same now.”