Derby County manager John Eustace
Derby County manager John Eustace
Derby County have an extended break compared to their Championship relegation rivals by virtue of their next opponents, Preston North End, being involved in an FA Cup quarter-final clash with Aston Villa.
That gives John Eustace what could be valuable extra time on the training pitch to continue to work his magic on his newly-inherited players who he’s guided to three straight league wins to transform confidence in the camp and give the Rams a more than fighting chance in their battle to avoid relegation.
Eustace’s men don’t play again until Wednesday, April 2, when they host the Lilywhites at Pride Park, just three days after Paul Heckigbottom’s side will have thrown themselves into a potentially energy-sapping cup tie against Premier League opponents at a time when North End are already short on numbers due to injuries to some key first team players.
Amongst those are Ali McCann – a real blow to the side that their number eight suffered his setback in the recent home match against Swansea City. On McCann’s 28th league start of the season, he was forced off in the second half with a calf issue. The Northern Ireland international has endured muscle problems before and looks doubtful for the FA Cup quarter-final against Aston Villa, with reports of the injury ruling him out for a month.
Addressing his side’s injury woes a couple of weeks ago, manager Paul Heckingbottom said: “It’s the soft tissue injuries that you always think you can do more on; there’s been a pattern here and we’ve just been speaking about it. This time of year it’s injuries like Ali’s. Between December and March the pitches get heavier. That’s been a pattern over the last few years that’s been flagged up.”
Elsewhere, Brad Potts went down injured late on at Sunderland in the penultimate match before the international break and is set for a spell on the sidelines with a hamstring issue. Potts missed a run of games over the festive period with a knee issue and the latest setback is a frustrating one, for a player Heckingbottom trusts to carry out a variety of roles. The PNE boss was coy over the length of the injury but admitted there was ‘damage’ and that makes him a doubt for Villa and possibly longer.
Meanwhile, centre-half Jack Whatmough suffered a nasty calf injury in the second half of the FA Cup clash against Wycombe Wanderers early last month and Heckingbottom doesn’t expect to see him feature again this campaign, recently reiterating that he would be managed carefully.
“Jack certainly won’t be rushed with the nature of his injury,” said the PNE boss. “Pretty severe one, so anything from Jack in my eyes is a bonus. It’s about making sure he’s 100% right.”
Further up the pitch, 13-goal striker Milutin Osmajic’s absence against Sheffield United, Sunderland and Portsmouth was put down to a niggling hip issue. Heckingbottom said the front man wasn’t right for the trip to Bramall Lane but there was hope of him returning for the Black Cats and Pompey contests. Osmajic has now been charged by the FA for alleged racial abuse and has until Tuesday, 25 March to submit his response. It remains to be seen whether he features against Villa or Derby.
Another player who has been struggling at the back is Jordan Storey who sustained an ankle injury at Blackburn Rovers when blocking a cross. He missed seven games in total but was back in the fold before the break, as an unused substitute against Portsmouth. Post-match the North End boss confirmed that Storey should be ready to make his return to the pitch against Villa. With Ryan Porteous and Kaine Kesler-Hayden both unable to play, and Whatmough out, it’s a timely return.
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