Derby County will want to get back to winning ways against Leyton Orient on Saturday with the visitors facing an injury crisis.
Derby slipped to a goalless draw against Wycombe Wanderers on Wednesday night. The Rams are still in second but promotion is now out of their hands.
Paul Warne‘s men are two points better off than third-place Bolton Wanderers, but as they play against Portsmouth on Saturday, Derby need Pompey to do them a massive favour.
Their draw against Wycombe saw Warne’s side create very little, although Corey Blackett-Taylor missing with the goal at his mercy summed up their night.
A response from his team has been ordered against Leyton Orient, who are sat in 10th, eight points adrift of the play-offs.
Orient drew against Exeter City on Tuesday night while Richie Wellens has revealed the club is in an injury crisis.
Leyton Orient have key players missing for Derby County match
Much like Derby, who have seven players sidelined, Wellens has described his teams’ injury situation as “extreme” ahead of their trip to Pride Park.
Speaking after the 2-2 draw against Exeter, Wellens said, as per the official club website: “The lack of bodies we have now, it was severe, it is now extreme.”
He added: “It will be a patched-up team (at Derby). We might give a few more young players an opportunity. We’ll get in training tomorrow, we’ll see the extent of the injuries.”
Defender Brandon Cooper was the latest player to go off injured in midweek, joining the likes of Darren Pratley, Theo Archibald and Dan Happe.
Ruel Sotiriou was also taken off in that fixture and he’s arguably the O’s biggest miss having plundered 11 goals and supplied five assists this term.
With Wellens poised to field a patched-up team, Derby’s chances of getting a result have increased.
Derby County must take advantage of Leyton Orient’s injury crisis
A packed-out Pride Park will want to see a big response from their side against Leyton Orient as a nerve-shredding climax to this League One campaign awaits.
The Rams are notoriously strong at home, winning 13 of their 21 matches and losing just four as the players usually feed off the noise inside the stadium.
It’s more important than ever for the players to turn up and anything other than three points against their injury-hit visitors would be inexcusable.
Derby’s season hinges on moments like this and whether they can handle a pressured situation remains to be seen.
Nonetheless, three points on Saturday afternoon is imperative for the Rams, otherwise, they’ll open the door to Bolton and Peterborough even wider.
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