3/1 To Win
Phillip Cocu has admitted he’s pleased to have George Evans back in the Derby County fold.
The 24-year-old midfielder made his comeback from a thigh injury, sustained in the opening month of the season, in last weekend’s 2-0 home win over Middlesbrough.
He replaced Krystian Bielik early in the second half of the Sky Bet Championship fixture after the Poland international sustained two heavy knocks either side of half-time.
Evans, who was a regular in the Derby side during pre-season and the early stages of the campaign, marked his comeback with a steady display in the holding midfield position.
The former Manchester City and Reading player is also capable of playing at centre-back and further adds to the options available for the Derby boss.
“George is back from injury and that’s pleasing,” Cocu said when speaking to the media after the win over Middlesbrough.
“He played 90 minutes for the Under-23s at the end of October and was available.
“He did very well when he came on and is another example that we work together not with just eleven players, we need everybody.”
Bielik required lengthy treatment on his ankle after being on the receiving end of a strong challenge from midfielder George Saville in the first half, which resulted in the Middlesbrough midfielder being shown a straight red card.
After picking up another knock just after half-time, Cocu was keen to replace the 21-year-old as a precautionary measure with Saturday’s visit to local rivals Nottingham Forest on Saturday in mind.
He said: “Krystian could continue, the ankle was fine and at half-time said ‘it is sore, but I can play’.
“We wanted to watch him closely to see how he got on. Then he got the second hit, I think he could continue, but it was more my precaution.
“Maybe one more thing happens, and I have had to get him off because he was injured, so we avoided that.”
