REACTION: Eustace And Ward Reflect On Wrexham Loss

Derby County Head Coach John Eustace believes his side deserved ‘at least a point’ from their 2-1 Sky Bet Championship defeat to Wrexham.

Matty James’ long-range stunner was the difference between the two sides in a closely fought contest at Pride Park Stadium, scoring after Ben Brereton Díaz had cancelled out Sam Smith’s opener in the first half.

A disappointed Derby boss says the Rams didn’t quite show enough quality to win the game but believes the performance merited a draw.

Speaking to RamsTV after the full-time whistle, Eustace discussed the differences on the day, his delight for Brereton Díaz, and reaching the end of a hectic festive fixture list.

On Deserving Something From The Game:

I think we deserved at least a point, so we’re disappointed. The way we started the game wasn’t great and going a goal down in the manner we did was poor. But we grew into the first half, scored a great goal and then felt very comfortable.

We started the second half like we started the first half, though. We wanted to go out there and be on the front foot, but we made a couple of mistakes and got punished from a fantastic goal.

We huffed and puffed in the second half, but we just lacked that bit of quality in the final third to make something happen.

On Making Tactical Tweaks After A Slow Start:

We made one or two positional changes just to make sure we got a grip of the game. We had three or four great chances after that and we scored a really good goal. That's a positive.

On Ben Brereton Diaz’s Goal:

I'm delighted for Ben because he hasn't scored as many goals as we would have liked. He was very clinical on that occasion this afternoon; it's great that he's got another goal.

I thought he played well today. That's why we brought him in here - to score vital goals and to make things happen - so hopefully now he can kick on.

On His Desire To Pick Up More Points At Pride Park:

The frustrating thing is losing at home; that's something that we want to put right. We want to make sure that the fans are coming away happy from Pride Park and it's something we've really got to make right in the second half of the season.

The fans give us confidence when we're on the pitch during those difficult moments, but we've certainly got to give them reasons to get right behind us.

On Reaching The End Of A Relentless Run:

You can see the squad has been stretched but the lads have put 100% effort in and that's all I ask for. We've had four really tough games and we've been so close to getting some better results, which is frustrating.

We are a work in progress, of course we are, but the effort the boys have put in is fantastic and now we've got to learn from our mistakes. We've got to learn from the four games over the Christmas period and try and push on in the second half of the season.

After the match, Rams wing-back Joe Ward also gave his assessment to RamsTV.

On His Disappointment In Defeat:

We’re absolutely gutted. I thought it was a really good opportunity to get three points, but it didn't end up that way. We worked as hard as we could and gave everything, but unfortunately it wasn't our day.

On Slow Starts To Both Halves:

We should have been better and started faster, but ultimately it wasn't to be. We've got to pick ourselves up and get ready for next weekend.

On His Happiness For Ben Brereton Diaz:

I’m really pleased for Ben. He does a lot of work that goes a bit unnoticed, but we've got a good relationship, and we work well together as a partnership. That relationship is just going to get stronger and stronger, hopefully.

He scored in the last game against them and he scored this game, so he must like scoring against Wrexham. It was a great bit of play and a superb finish from him.

On The Fatigue Of The Festive Period:

It's been a really tough period, but we've done alright through it. The medical team and everyone behind the scenes has been great. We've recovered well and got through it.

We've got a couple of days off now to rest and then get ready for a good FA Cup game against Leeds United.