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Derby vs Cardiff predictions: Rams can continue encouraging start
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Ian Wilkerson
Spotlight
Paul Warne led Derby to promotion from League One last season and they have started well this term.
Paul Warne led Derby to promotion from League One last season and they have started well this term.

- Derby have won their last nine matches at Pride Park
- Cardiff have taken just one point from their last six Championship games
- Recommended bet:
Derby to win

Derby have taken six points from their opening four games since gaining promotion back to the Championship and as both wins came at Pride Park, they will be confident that they can get the better of Cardiff, who have claimed just one point and who are bottom of the table.

Team news

Derby boss Paul Warne is likely to stick with the starting line-up that earned a 3-0 win over Bristol City in their last league game, although he could include Nat Phillips and Marcus Harness, who have joined from Liverpool and Ipswich.

Cardiff defender Jesper Daland faces a test on his ankle injury, but Aaron Ramsey is out with a hamstring injury he suffered playing for Wales.

The stats

Both teams have scored in four of Cardiff’s last six Championship away matches, while the Bluebirds have lost nine of their last 13 league games.

Derby have won their last nine matches at Pride Park and have kept six straight league clean sheets on their own patch.

Cardiff have taken just one point from their last six Championship games.

Erol Bulut will be desperate to help move Cardiff away from the foot of the Championship table.
Erol Bulut will be desperate to help move Cardiff away from the foot of the Championship table.

Prediction

Derby have settled well back into the Championship after gaining promotion last season and it already looks as if the Rams’ home form will be the foundation of their attempt to ensure they stay beyond a solitary campaign.

Warne’s side have already seen off Middlesbrough and Bristol City on their own patch and could have taken more than six points from their opening four games as they put up decent performances in defeats to fast starters Blackburn and Watford.

A League Cup home win over nearby Chesterfield means they have built on the run of six straight League One Pride Park victories they posted in the closing weeks of last season, so Warne’s side will feel they can take anyone on from the second tier on their own patch.

They should have enough to see off Cardiff, who have endured a difficult start, which was perhaps predictable after they struggled with inconsistency in the closing weeks of the last campaign.

This season got off to a miserable start when they were beaten 2-0 at home to Sunderland and the scale of their task to have a successful season was exposed when they were brushed aside 5-0 at relegated Burnley.

Their solitary point so far came in the South Wales derby when they needed a late goal to earn a 1-1 draw against Swansea, while they have also had to dwell on a 2-0 home defeat to Middlesbrough just before the international break.

The news that skipper Ramsey has suffered a hamstring injury is a further blow and gaining anything at Pride Park looks a tough task for Erol Bulut’s side.

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Derby CountyCardiff CityChampionship
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