Derby v Leicester City Betting Tip Derby – 27 January 2017

Derby can take the local bragging rights in FA Cup

FA Cup & League Cup Tips

Friday 27th January 2016 Kickoff: 1955hrs Derby County v Leicester City Football – England – FA Cup The FA Cup takes prominence this weekend in England and it kicks off on Friday night with a spicy midlands clash. Championship Derby County are on a good run at the moment and host a Leicester City team who have been in dire form the last couple of months. Whilst not carrying the same romanticism as it has done in the past, this game will be played in front of a packed iPro Stadium and there will be plenty of local rivalry to whet the appetite.

Steve McClaren returned to Derby for a second spell in charge earlier in the season and his arrival has sparked life into the Rams season when it looked like they were destined for another season of Championship football come August. Seven straight wins between October and December has catapulted them back into the playoff picture where they sit just two points outside the top six. Saturday’s 3-2 win over Reading got their promotion push back on charge having lost two consecutive games in the league for the first time since early September. That success should ensure they approach this game in good heart, though, and looking forward to a game against an old rival. Derby also faced Premier League opposition in the previous round where they pulled off a very impressive 2-1 win against West Brom at the Hawthorns. The Baggies have been in excellent form, particularly at home, so that win was an illustration of how capable Derby are and considering that they tend to fare better at home than on the road then the prospect of taking on a struggling Premier League team at home should hold no fears for McLaren and his players.

Leicester City winning the Premier League will go down in history as one of the greatest achievements in English football but it seems such a long time ago now for Claudio Ranieri’s team. Their below par performances in the first half of the season were somewhat justified by the fact that they were doing well in the Champions League and the expectation was domestic results would pick up once they had secured qualification – that has not come to fruition. The Foxes defeat to Southampton at the weekend means they are now just five points outside the bottom three and in real danger of being dragged further into the mire. It’s now just one win in seven league games and just two in their last 13. Some supporters may be clinging to the hope that key players will return from the African Cup of Nations sooner than expected to be bolster the manger’s options but they were fully participative in the first half of the campaign when they underperformed. Leicester did pull off something of a surprise result in the last round of this competition by winning 2-1 at Goodison Park against Everton but they face arguably a more difficult tie this time around as it is against a team from a lower division and because it is a Midlands derby.

Derby County v Leicester City Betting Tip

These two last clashed in 2014 in the season Leicester won promotion so it’s a game that both sets of supporters will be eagerly anticipating. There’s no doubt that Derby will feel quietly confident of getting a result against the current Premier League champions as they defend a great home record. The Rams have not lost at home since McClaren returned to the club and are on a current run of five wins in their last six, conceding just two goals. Leicester will definitely be looking over their shoulders with regards to relegation and whilst many suspect that they have too much quality to go down they desperately need to start winning games.

Having watched Leicester’s defeat against Southampton on Sunday I would be alarmed at how little desire was on display and the fact they looked beaten as soon as the Saints took the lead. That does not augur well for the games that lie ahead and whilst this game is obviously in a different competition, I’ve seen enough from Leicester recently to feel they are a team to oppose in the coming weeks, starting on Friday. Derby have a clutch of Premier League quality players in their squad and are more than capable of getting the win tomorrow and heaping more misery on Leicester by taking the spoils.