3/1 To Win
After Derby County produced one of their ‘most complete’ performances under his guidance, Gary Rowett says the challenge is to make sure it was not a one-off.
The Rams were at their clinical and ruthless best last Friday night as they swept Hull City aside to record a 5-0 win at Pride Park Stadium – courtesy of braces from Matej Vydra and Bradley Johnson and a header from Curtis Davies, against his former club.
For Rowett, the Derby manager, it was just the reaction he wanted to the 3-1 defeat to Sheffield United before the international break.
“We got that and a little bit more,” he told RamsTV. “Friday night was, probably, one of the most complete performances that we have had and that boiled down to the chances that we took.
“We have seen other games where we have created lots of opportunities and just not taken the chances. That has affected the result in the end.”
Rowett got a big glimpse of what his side are capable of and now he wants more of it, particularly on their travels.
He added: “I am pleased with how professional we were throughout the game – against a quality team, but it was one match.
“We now have to find a way of getting elements from that game into every match that we play.
“It’s great that they can do it on a Friday evening in front of the cameras, but we have got to replicate that away from home in games where they are not as exciting to play in.”
Next up is a short trip to South Yorkshire this evening to face Barnsley in the Second Round of the Carabao Cup, kick-off: 7:45pm.
The two teams meet tonight in the knowledge that Tottenham Hotspur and Wembley Stadium await the winners of this meeting at Oakwell a week later.
It’s a mouth-watering reward for sure, but it will be the lasting the Rams will be thinking about when they cross the white line to face Paul Heckingbottom’s Barnsley.
Rowett said: “We would have been trying to win the game anyway. If we did anything different to what we did at Grimsby, it would be unprofessional of us.
“We have got to try and balance off the demands of the amount of games we have in the Championship as well as this cup because we are a game behind.
“If you look at the team we put out against Grimsby it had the feel of a Championship team.”
Rowett also took an opportunity to speak about his opposite number in the dugout this evening.
Heckingbottom has done a fine job at Oakwell, which started with him guiding the Tykes back to the Championship via the play-offs and then cementing their position in the second tier – despite losing a number of his key players.
“I think Paul has done a fantastic job,” Rowett added. “I would say that he was one of the most under-rated managers in this division, but that isn’t the case actually.
“He is very highly-rated, by a lot of people and I think they had a terrific season last year; they were very difficult to play against.
“You could tell they were really well coached and had a great energy about the team.
“When any manager that has had to sell six or seven top players from that team and then go again, you are always going to have a little dip and drop off. Paul Heckingbottom has done an amazing job.”
