INTERVIEW: "Ready For More' - Ozoh Ahead Of Charlton Trip

Raring to go again after his first start in over three months, Derby County midfielder David Ozoh says he is ‘ready for more’.

The Crystal Palace loanee impressed during his comeback from the off against Preston North End at the weekend, having missed 11 Sky Bet Championship matches after picking up an injury inside the opening 10 minutes of the Rams’ 2-1 victory over Blackburn Rovers in November.

Keen to make up for lost time, and crucially stay fit for the second half of the campaign, Ozoh says the team hold lofty ambitions for the remaining 19 games of the season, with Derby’s quality evidenced in Saturday's win at Deepdale.

Speaking to RamsTV ahead of Tuesday’s trip to Charlton Athletic, he spoke of his delight at playing again and outlined his intentions for the rest of the season.

On A Winning Return:

It was good to be back. It was a long time out, so it was nice to get my first start and I'm ready for more.

You could see the celebrations after the game. You could see how happy we were to get that win and I feel like it's important to get into that run like we had earlier in the season.

On His Recovery From Injury:

It was not a nice feeling, especially the fear of not knowing what's going to happen when you initially get the injury. I'm happy to be back now, that's the most important thing.

I was back in training for two and a half weeks before the Preston game, I felt like I caught my fitness in that period. Coming on against Leeds as well, which was a very intense game, that was good for me and good for my fitness levels.

On His Proactive Approach To Injury Prevention:

I know it's part of the game, but I'm trying to do everything I can to cut that out. I've invested a lot in my body now and it's very important for me.

I think for a big guy like me, I feel like I have to invest in things like an oxygen chamber and red-light therapy. It's quite expensive, but I've got to do these things to play the game. I guess it's part of the process.

Obviously, everyone's different. Only being 20 years old, coming into a tough league like the Championship, it’s not easy. Having a bigger body, it's not very easy to maintain if you don't do recovery. So, I feel like I've learnt a lot about my body already.

On His Partnership With Lewis Travis:

I think we complement each other very well. I think he gets me geared up for the game. Before the match against Preston, he gave me the biggest death stare and told me: ‘Dave, come on, we've got to win this.’

He's a top guy, a great leader, and a great footballer as well. I feel like we've missed him a lot this season.

On His Aims For The Rest Of The Season:

I want to finish the season fit, finish in the play-offs and get as many points as we can. I've said from the start of the season that the team's got a lot of quality.

The gaffer has done well bringing in players that have been involved in promotions and won titles. We want to bring that winning feeling to this group. I really feel that we can push on.

The Preston game showed exactly what we can do. Hopefully we can do that for the rest of the season.