3/1 To Win
Phillip Cocu believes Derby County are ‘in a good place’ after they saw off Premier League side Crystal Palace to reach the Fourth Round of the Emirates FA Cup on Sunday afternoon.
Striker Chris Martin scored the only goal of the game at Selhurst Park just after the half-hour mark with a well-taken finish from Jayden Bogle’s right-wing cross.
Palace had captain Luka Milivojevic sent off following a VAR review for violent conduct, following an off-the-ball incident with Tom Huddlestone, in the second half and despite being a man down they did apply pressure late on.
Derby did have chances to make life easier in the latter stages with Martyn Waghorn hitting the post and captain Wayne Rooney going close, but in the end they managed the game well to progress to the Fourth Round of the competition.
After the back-to-back league wins either side of the New Year
against Charlton Athletic and Barnsley at Pride Park Stadium, the Rams
have now won three games in succession.
Speaking to RamsTV after the game, Cocu said: “I am happy with the win; we go into the Fourth Round and it is special.
“I think this result shows that we are in a good place and also how we played the game today, it was a great team performance.
“We needed five or ten minutes early on to see how Crystal Palace played, how they pressed and to find a way out from the back.
“We just went out and said like in our other games, home or away, we wanted to be brave and to play.
“With the combination with Wayne Rooney and Tom Huddlestone in the midfield, we wanted to be supported and build things up. They had excellent deliveries for the boys who made the runs.
“We knew if we could break with the first press then the midfield would have more space to get on the ball from what we saw in the games that Crystal Palace had played. The lads did fantastic doing it.”
The build-up to Martin’s decisive strike pleased the Derby boss.
The ball was worked out wide to Bogle and the England Under-20 international whipped in a fine cross which Martin converted with the outside of his right foot.
Deliveries into the box have been paying dividends for the Rams in recent games and Cocu is pleased to see Derby’s work on the training ground paying off.
Cocu said: “The deliveries is something we focus on a lot in training sessions; the touch before cross, the delivery, the timing, where to put the ball and where to run into.
“It was a great cross by Jayden Bogle and we saw something similar in the last game from Andre Wisdom.
“It was an important strike and I am pleased with the goal. Like I said after the Barnsley game when Jack Marriott and Martyn Waghorn scored, it is important for strikers to get goals and he did.”
Cocu was also impressed with the midfield combination between Huddlestone and Rooney.
Huddlestone was back in the side after three months out with a hamstring injury while Rooney, who made his Derby debut in the 2-1 home win over Barnsley on Thursday, completed his second 90 minutes inside four days.
The duo, both former England internationals, add undoubted ability and experience to the Rams’ side and Cocu felt it was evident at Selhurst Park how big a part they can play in the second half of the season.
He said: “They are very clever with good vision, they know where to receive the ball but also know what to do with it with good decision making.
“It gives us a lot more calmness and security on the ball when we pay out. I was very pleased to see Tom return after a long time out with a hamstring injury and Wayne showed not only can he play in offensive position but also more in a controlled one.”
