Derby County travel to Middlesbrough with several injured players.
Matt Clarke’s Middlesbrough homecoming is in danger after the defender suffered what appeared to be a hamstring injury over the weekend, with troubled Derby County likely missing seven important players at the Riverside.
John Eustace, a former Boro loanee, has lost his first two games as manager of the Rams since leaving Blackburn Rovers earlier this month. They travel to Boro on Saturday in desperate need of a win after Hull City’s shock victory over Sunderland on Saturday left Derby four points from safety.
Boro head into the game off the back of getting back to winning ways on Tuesday evening against Stoke City. However, as well as being afflicted by an illness going through the group, Boro have a bit of a defensive injury crisis, with Rav van den Berg missing the Stoke trip with a knee injury, and George Edmundson then going off with an ankle problem. But Derby have injury problems of their own, with Clarke’s withdrawal on Saturday also adding to seeing influential Crystal Palace loanee David Ozoh being stretchered off.
Speaking after the Millwall defeat at the hands of a late Josh Coburn goal, Eustace told our sister site Derbyshire Live: “David has a muscle injury in his thigh so we will have to assess that and see how he is. Clarkey came off and I don’t know whether it is cramp or a slight strain. We will have to assess that and have a look.”
As well as doubts over Ozoh and Clarke, Derby are also currently without Nat Phillips, Curtis Nelson (knee), Dajaune Brown (hamstring), Corey Blackett-Taylor (hamstring) and Kane Wilson (hamstring). It’s far from ideal for the relegation-threatened Rams.
