Saturday 31 December
English Championship
Derby County v West Ham United
Derby have won their last two home games and will be aiming to make it three when they entertain promotion chasing West Ham at Pride Park.
Derby always seem to start the season very well but can never sustain their form for any length of time. Despite racing out the blocks this term and winning their first four league games, their inconsistency is there for all to see and they find themselves slap bang in mid-table heading into the New Year. Nigel Clough is probably aware that his squad is not good enough to challenge for the top two positons, but he also knows that there are upwards of a dozen teams capable of achieving a play-off place. Currently four points off Reading who occupy sixth spot at the moment, another couple of wins in the upcoming games would see them bang there. Clough will be pleased that his side’s home form has got more consistent this season and their six wins from 12 games is pretty decent. Their most recent home win against Leeds on Boxing Day will have been a welcome boost ahead of an even bigger challenge on New Years Eve.
West Ham were many people’s favourites to win the division this season let alone get promoted. Sam Allardyce will be relatively pleased with where his side are at this moment in time but he is always striving for improvement and will be determined to add quality to his squad when the transfer window reopens in a couple of days. Boxing Day’s draw at St Andrews against Birmingham was not the worst result but it did allow Middlesbrough to draw level on points with the Hammers after winning earlier on in the day. It means that three points separate the top three teams with a gap of five between third and fourth place. West Ham have the best away record in the division so a trip to Pride Park should hold no fears but they not won on the road since November, albeit they have had just the two away games to date in December. League leaders Southampton play this evening whilst ‘Boro are also at home tomorrow – with both teams expected to win their respective matches there is little room for error for West Ham if they wish to remain in the top two before the turn of the year.
Derby have lost four times at home this season with three of those defeats coming consecutively in November. All three of the reverses were against teams above them, namely Cardiff, Hull and Brighton. Those defeats make the victory over Leeds even more significant as it provides the belief need by the players in order to compete against the better sides in the Championship.
West Ham have already defeated some of the better sides in the league on the road including Middlesbrough. Their record at Pride Park is also very decent as they have not lost at Derby since December 1997. The seven games since that loss they have won four and drawn three so their fans may well be looking forward to the match to get them back on track after a run of one win in four games.
Derby will be buoyed by their recent home wins but tomorrow’s match will be their biggest test for a while. West Ham have not been playing too well of late but remain strong and with their impressive record at Pride Park, I think they will edge this one.
My Selection: West Ham to beat Derby
Best odds available: 23/20 available with William Hill
There will be an additional preview for the games taking place on January 2nd. Until then, I hope you all have a very Happy New Year.
