On Wednesday night, two bottom-half sides face each other as Queens Park Rangers travel to Derby County looking to secure back-to-back wins for the first time this season.
Derby come into this fixture having had a win snatched away from them at the death on Saturday, as Bournemouth grabbed a late equaliser. For Queens Park Rangers, it was they who took all three points late on against Cardiff City.
Match preview
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Wayne Rooney could not inspire his Derby side to a second win of the season on his return to action after self-isolation but will be pleased nonetheless that they were able to take a point away from Bournemouth, one of the league's strongest teams.
A Graeme Shinnie deflected shot looked to be enough for the Rams, until Rodrigo Riquelme had the final say 10 minutes before full time. Derby did have one final chance to take the win, but Lee Buchanan's shot was cleared off the line.
Phillip Cocu's side sit 22nd in the league having only mustered six points from eight games so far this season, one of Derby's worst starts going back many years.
They will also need to secure their first win at Pride Park if they are to overcome the R's, having lost three, drawn one and having scored only one goal in those four home fixtures. The Rams will also need to overcome a poor record against QPR, with only one win in their last five against the London side.
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A stunning strike from Dominic Ball deep into added time ended QPR's winless streak as they took all three points against Cardiff City on Saturday, but Mark Warburton will be very aware that his QPR side have a long way to go as a team before they are convincing.
QPR opted to swap their traditional blue and white hoops for a red and white shirt in the style of the away kit worn by the club's 1975-76 team, who were pipped to the title by Liverpool. The kit has been produced to mark the 45th anniversary of Rangers' best season and seemed to act as a good omen on the day.
That was their first win in eight matches, and they now lie in 18th place with only two wins from their opening nine games.
After facing Derby County, Warburton's men travel to Ewood Park to face the division's top scorers in Blackburn Rovers, where they will aim to go into the international break on a high.
Derby County Championship form: WLLDDD
Queens Park Rangers Championship form: DLDDDW
Team News
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Derby have a clean bill of health coming into this fixture, now that they have their skipper Wayne Rooney back in their ranks. Though two games in five days may come too soon for the former England captain.
If rested, Duane Holmes could come into the lineup taking Rooney's place in midfield.
For QPR, Rob Dickie will return from suspension after serving a one-match ban for the red card he received against Barnsley.
Conor Masterson will likely drop out of the starting XI to make way for the returning centre-half.
Derby County possible starting lineup:
Marshall; Wisdom, Davies, Clarke; Byrne, Rooney, Shinnie, Buchanan; Lawrence, Waghorn, Knight
Queens Park Rangers possible starting lineup:
Dieng; Kakay, Dickie, Barbet, Hamalainen; Ball, Carroll; Adomah, Bonne, Chair; Dykes
We say: Derby County 2-1 Queens Park Rangers
Derby have managed to get their noses in front in recent games and will fancy their chances against QPR come Wednesday night. With a returning Rooney and Martyn Waghorn back in form, we expect the home side to come out on top.
Top betting tip
Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting over 1.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Over 1.5:dataData Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Derby County win with a probability of 38.65%. A win for Queens Park Rangers had a probability of 33.79% and a draw had a probability of 27.6%.
The most likely scoreline for a Derby County win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.28%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.17%) and 2-0 (7.08%). The likeliest Queens Park Rangers win was 0-1 (10.38%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.02%). The actual scoreline of 0-1 was predicted with a 10.4% likelihood.
