Pride Park was the venue for this vital showdown between Derby County and MK Dons, a fixture that carried huge importance at both ends of the League 1 table.
Heading into the game, Derby sat 7th and outside the playoff places on goal difference, in the middle of an indifferent spell of form that has allowed them to be overtaken by Peterborough United.
On the other hand, MK Dons went on to this afternoon’s clash in fine form, taking 11 from the last 15 available points to claw themselves out of the bottom 4.
Team News
Derby County made two changes from their victory last time out against Forest Green Rovers, with James Chester and Louie Sibley dropping out of the starting XI and being replaced by Tom Barkhuizen and Jake Rooney.
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The visitors made three changes from their Good Friday draw against Portsmouth, with Daniel Harvie and Jack Tucker dropping out injured and being replaced by Zak Jules and Henry Lawrence while Nathan Holland came in for Conor Grant who dropped to the bench.
https://twitter.com/MKDonsFC/status/1645411809590136834
First Half
MK Dons kicked this game off on a sunny afternoon in Derby and could have been behind within a minute and a half as James Collins hit a post with a curling effort from 12 yards out after David McGoldrick had managed to force the ball through to the number 9. The Dons managed to regain their composure and got into good positions on two occasions down the right, with Jonathon Leko earning his side a corner when one on one against Hayden Roberts.
After the opening five minutes, the first half was pretty much all Derby County’s as they began to dominate possession and cause the visitors problems. The experienced McGoldrick was dropping into the number 10 position and lots of what The Rams did early doors involved him and his side were looking to exploit The Dons down their right through Nathaniel Mendez-Laing who would squander at least two good opportunities. The wingers first came when he was played in on goal down from a through ball down the side of MK Dons captain Lewington and he shot straight at Cumming who saved with his feet.
Mendez-Laing was involved again as Eiran Cashin sprayed the ball out to the former Cardiff City man whose cross was headed out for a corner by Lewington, who was making his 760th league appearance for Milton Keynes. The corner led to Derby taking the lead as David McGoldrick tapped home from on the goal line after James Collins had flicked on the near post delivery. This was the 18th league goal of the season for the former Republic of Ireland international and the Pride Park crowd were singing his name.
Following the goal, Derby gained control of the match, keeping possession well themselves and being the first to any loose balls. Their opponents were seemingly content with sitting off and weren’t applying any pressure to the man in possession. Korey Smith, Hourihane and Knight were in control in the middle of the park and their patient build-up led to the ball reaching Barkhuizen and Mendez-Laing in the wide positions and multiple corners for the home side.
Mendez-Laing would then be in a wasteful mood again, firstly after McGoldrick had stolen the ball from a poor Lewington header and had played the ball into Knight who in turn had rolled the ball back to the winger on the edge of the box but, instead of having a go himself or looking to his left, he rolled the ball back to Knight whose run had taken him offside. Moments later, he would find himself played in by Collins down the right after Derby had won back possession and he shot wide at the near post when he had to go across the goalkeeper.
MK Dons were sedate and lacking urgency, both in and out of possession and their midfield of Maghoma and McEachran were finding the going very tough indeed. Derby were shooting on site with efforts from distance from McGoldrick and Smith both being blocked and cleared. The game had reached a point where Derby were their own toughest opponent and their sloppy play gave the visitors a glimmer of an opening before halftime. Nathan Holland, who was the liveliest of the Dons on the pitch, broke forward and was fouled. The resulting free kick was played deep to the back post and headed back by Zak Jules before being cleared by a combination of Cashin and Collins, a clash that would leave the latter bleeding and in need of treatment.
Half Time
Derby County 1 (McGoldrick, 17) MK Dons 0
The surprising thing here is perhaps that MK Dons only made one substitution at halftime and didn’t change their shape, despite having very little impact on the first 45 minutes. Conor Grant came on to replace Jonathon Leko, who wasn’t the worst player in red by a long way.
Second Half
The opening to the second half was slow and neither side was able to keep hold of possession in the first five minutes. MK Dons managed to settle the quicker of the two and, for the first time in the match, had some spells of possession although were unable to create anything from it. The possession didn’t last long as the home side, through players like Hourihane, got themselves back into the match. Hourihane was composed and comfortable in possession and was a willing worker when needing to win the ball back.
As the hour mark approached, it was again Mendez-Laing in the thick of the action as he got himself against Jules, beating him to aim a cross at the head of Collins who saw his header easily saved by Cumming. Almost immediately, Mendez-Laing was back on the ball and running at the defence, this time rolling the ball out to McGoldrick who saw his cross headed out for a corner. The first corner was cleared for a second and it was from that that Derby discontent with the referee started. The front post was again the target for the delivery and as it landed, it appeared that a hand went up and made contact with the ball in the middle of the melee. The replay was inconclusive but arguments could be made for it being the hand of MK Dons’ midfielder McEachran but both sets of players appealed for the referee to find in their favour. Instead, it was play on, much to the annoyance of the home crowd.
There were more handball cries a couple of minutes later as Barkhuizen and McGoldrick exchanged possession just inside the box, but the appeals were ignored once more. The home crowd were again asking for a penalty just minutes later as Knight ran onto a pass-cum-clearance from Hourihane and found himself running into the area being chased by Jules. Knight’s touch wasn’t the best and Jules got back, giving the Derby man a little nudge for his troubles.
It would take until the 68th minute for the relegation-threatened visitors to mount a serious threat to the home goal and it would be their equaliser. The lively Holland managed to bounce off Mendez-Laing near the Derby corner flag and ran into the box where Korey Smith afforded him too much space and his penalty spot pullback was met by Henry Lawrence who side-footed the ball into the top corner.
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Paul Warne would respond by making three substitutions, replacing Smith, Collins and Hourihane with Max Bird, Lewis Dobbin and Harvey White. The home crowd were becoming increasingly restless and frustrated, both with the officials and the gamesmanship being shown by MK Dons. The Dons made their changes with 13 minutes to go, taking off Mo Eisa and Holland and replacing them with Max Dean and Will Grigg. Further substitutions for both sides followed and the flow of the game was somewhat disrupted.
With four minutes remaining, Derby worked the ball from Cashin to Knight and on to Mendez-Laing who pulled the ball back to substitute Dobbin and his shot was saved by Cumming before hitting the offside McGoldrick. The fourth official held up seven minutes of added time and this gave the home fans hope that their side could get back on the playoff trail. Without creating any clear-cut chances, Derby tried to up the tempo and had crosses blocked and a half-chance Dobbin on the turn cleared. Crosses were attacked by multiple attackers and defenders and Dons managed to get on to any second balls and hack them clear. The referee’s whistle was met with boos from the Pride Park faithful and cheers amongst the MK Dons’ players and management as this point moves them four points clear of the drop zone but leaves Derby out of the playoffs on goal difference.
Full Time
Derby County 1 (McGoldrick, 17) MK Dons 1 (Lawrence, 68)
Man of the Match
Derby County announced their man of the match as defender Eiran Cashin. Cashin was steady throughout but wasn’t tested defensively. A case could be made for Hourihane before his substitution as he was looking to control play and was tackling to win it back for his side as they pushed for the vital second goal.
A primary school teacher turned writer, Tom has been part of The Real EFL for two years. He focuses on predictions, deep dives, and insightful content.
