Derby County manager John Eustace believes a togetherness in the group will be pivotal to their relegation battle.
The Rams have recorded back-to-back wins for the first time since August to move to within one point of safety. It was a long wait for Eustace, who picked up his first victory since taking over in February last weekend against former club Blackburn Rovers. They then followed that with an impressive 2-0 win over play-off chasers Coventry City on Tuesday night.
Derby travel to fellow strugglers Plymouth Argyle on Saturday in a potential six-pointer. Victory for the Pilgrims would see them leapfrog the East Midlands side, whilst a third win on the bounce for Eustace’s side could see them jump out of the bottom three.
Eustace Praises Impact Of Staff
A renewed belief has emerged from Pride Park over the past week, with Eustace crediting those behind the scenes. Speaking to Rams TV, the ex-Birmingham City boss said:
“It was a great effort from our group, and everyone involved at Derby County.
“The staff this week have been amazing, the staff last week were excellent as well, to really help the boys get through a difficult week, so it’s been a group effort up to now and it’ll be a group effort until the end of the season.”
Continuing, Eustace admitted he has been pleased with how competitive his squad have been over the past couple of weeks:
“There’s still a lot of hard work ahead, I think the last couple of games we’ve been very competitive, I think in Middlesbrough we were very competitive as well. You can see the team evolving gradually and the most important thing is that we are competitive every game we play, and I think we’ve done that.”
Writer’s View
Momentum is crucial for any team battling relegation at this stage of the season, and Derby certainly have that. It’s been a much-needed boost in form, especially with Luton Town and Plymouth both winning their last fixtures. The Rams know that they will give themselves a real chance of survival by beating Miron Muslic’s team on Saturday. If they do, you have to fear for the likes of Cardiff City and Oxford United, who can’t buy a win at the moment.
