‘The Win Is All That Matters’

Derby County might not have been at their ruthless best against Preston North End, but Andreas Weimann says they have got the win they needed to go and build some momentum.

Matej Vydra’s penalty conversion shortly before the hour mark proved to be enough at Pride Park Stadium as the Rams claimed their first three points of the 2017/18 Sky Bet Championship by beating the Lilywhites 1-0 on Tuesday night.

It could, however, have been a far more comfortable evening for Gary Rowett’s side.

Weimann, who was described as ‘unbelievable’ for the energy he displayed on the night by Derby’s manager, had two chances, David Nugent had another and Vydra saw a header saved.

Nevertheless, Weimann felt the Rams enjoyed a lot more joy on the counter attack against Alex Neil’s side off the back of Saturday’s 2-0 defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers and was delighted that they have now got their season up and running.

The 26-year-old Austrian international told RamsTV: “We changed formation a little bit from Saturday. We tried to be a little bit more compact at the back and hit them on the break.

“I thought that it came off quite well.

“Vyds (Matej Vydra) came in, found pockets of space and got on the turn a few times as well.

“Nugent was always busy up front too and was unlucky not to score as well from his couple of chances.

“We had quite a few chances; I had a few, David Nugent had a couple and Vyds had his header so we could have had a few more goals.

“Having said that, we defended well as a team and didn’t let them have too many chances at the other end so it was good to get a clean sheet as well as the win. That’s all that matters.”

The Rams’ focus will now turn to the weekend when they hit the road to face Bolton Wanderers at the Macron Stadium on Saturday, kick-off: 3pm.

The newly promoted Trotters are without a win since being promoted to the Championship – claiming two draws from their first three games.

After Derby got their first win on the board, though, Weimann says the aim now has to be to build on it.

He added: “Going to Bolton will be a good place to go – they have just got promoted as well so they will still be buzzing.

“It will be tough but hopefully from this win we can go with more confidence and gain another victory.”