After fielding possibly the youngest Under-23s team during his time in charge of the Academy, Darren Wassall is hoping to be in a position to call upon a number of his regular players for their Premier League Cup meeting with Sheffield United.
The Rams take on the Blades in the Last-16 of the competition at Bracken Moor, the home of Stocksbridge Park Steels, on Tuesday evening, kick-off: 7pm.
Before the international break, Derby’s Under-23s fielded largely an Under-18s side, which also included two schoolboys, in a 4-0 defeat to Manchester City in Premier League 2 Division.
That itself boiled down to the fact that a number of the squad’s regulars were integrated into Gary Rowett’s squad for the East Midlands derby clash with Nottingham Forest – supplementing a group hampered by injuries.
Will they return to the Under-23s for the trip to Stocksbridge?
At the time of this interview it was too early to say, but Wassall says that his younger players will be all the better for their meeting with Manchester City and he would have no qualms in throwing them back into the action once again should they be needed.
“It’s been a case of seeing how these last few days go,” Wassall told RamsTV.
“Those young players that played against Manchester City a couple of Friday’s ago will have only benefitted from that.
“For me personally, though, I know that whoever plays, they will be more prepared than they were a couple of weeks ago. They proved they can do a job for us against a top, top, side.”
Away from their league campaign, Wassall has also spoken about his Derby side making the most of the pressure that comes with knockout football.
With a place in the quarter-finals and a home meeting with Newcastle United at stake, Derby’s academy director wants to see his players thrive and play to their capabilities.
“We’re in the last-16 and would like to progress through to the quarter-finals,” he said.
“There’s a lot riding on it in that sense. We didn’t progress out of the group stages last season, so there is a real determination to go as far as we can in this competition this time around.
“Sheffield United are a team we don’t usually play in the league so that in itself adds a bit more spice to the game and, as they have shown in their own cup matches, they are going to provide us with a really competitive match.
“They have always been a tough opponent for us, but if we play to our own capabilities we know we have a great chance of going through.”
