A long trip to Wales separates Derby County from the second international break of the season as they prepare to face Cardiff City on Saturday afternoon.
The Rams take on the early Sky Bet Championship pace-setters at the Cardiff City Stadium, has pulled together all the key information you are going to need to know…
WHAT’S THE LATEST TEAM NEWS?
Mason Bennett will miss Derby County’s trip to Cardiff City this weekend after suffering a blow to the knee in the early stages of Tuesday night’s 1-1 draw at Brentford.
Gary Rowett confirmed in his pre-match press conference that the 21-year-old will be ruled out for the next four to six weeks with ligament damage.
George Thorne returned to action for the Rams’ Under-23s in their Premier League Cup match against Birmingham City after struggling with illness.
The 24-year-old played in the match alongside Jason Shackell and Ikechi Anya, but the trio are unlikely to be involved at Cardiff.
That aside, Rowett, the Derby manager, will have a similar squad to call upon once again.
WHAT DID THE BOSS HAVE TO SAY?
Speaking to RamsTV ahead of the trip to the Welsh capital, Gary Rowett said: “They don’t make a lot of passes at the back, I think they have made the least amount of passes and keep the least possession in the division but they have the most entry into the final third.
“You know the ball is coming into the box and that they’re going to play forward really quickly and be quite direct in the way they play, because Neil’s [Warnock] teams are always like that.
“What you also know is that you’re going to have to be physically ready because if you’re not, they’ll put you under pressure.
“We have to use the ball better, against a team like that you have to be able to pass the ball - firstly, to be able to create things yourself, and secondly, to quell that pressure.
“We know what we need to do, we probably have a clearer picture of how to play the opposition than in a couple of the other games and it will just come down to if we can execute that properly.”
WHO IS THE PLAYER TO WATCH?
Kenneth Zohore went from fringe player to revelation during the second part of the 2016/17 season for Cardiff City.
The forward enjoyed a prolific spell during the second half of the campaign and netted 10 goals in 11 matches as the Bluebirds threatened a late dash for the play-off positions.
The focal point of the Cardiff attack, Zohore has scored three goals so far this term, including a brace in the 3-1 win over Leeds United earlier this week.
The young Dane arrived on loan from Belgian club K.V. Kortrijk, following an impressive stay with Odense Boldklub in the Danish Superliga, where he netted nine times in twenty-four appearances.
After scoring twice for City towards the end of 2015/16, Kenneth signed a three-year contract with the Bluebirds in July 2016.
Kenneth came through the youth ranks at FC Copenhagen and became the youngest player ever to score for the club when he was just sixteen years old. Zohore has also had loan spells with Danish clubs Brøndby and Göteborg from Italian side Fiorentina. For Göteborg, the striker scored his first goal for the club just three minutes after coming on as an 83rd minute substitute in his home début.
Kenneth is a physically strong player who is very good in the air and these attributes were noticed by the Denmark U21 national team, for whom he has scored six times in fifteen appearances.
There is true footballing pedigree in Kenneth’s family as his father is second cousins with ex-Chelsea striker Didier Drogba.
City's number 10 holds the 2017 'Young Player of the Season' and 'Goal of the Season' accolades.
HOW I CAN SECURE MY SEAT
Tickets for Derby County’s 2017/18 Sky Bet Championship fixture at Cardiff City this afternoon (3pm kick-off) will be available on arrival at the Cardiff City Stadium.
Supporters had the chance to pre-purchase tickets in advance of the fixture before they went off sale on Friday afternoon.
There’s a £2 price increase on all age bands for standard match tickets when paying on the day, with tickets available from 12:30pm at the away end. Please note that payment is by cash only.
Matchday tickets have been confirmed at the following prices:
Standard
Adults - £25
Senior Citizens (60+) - £21
Ages 16 to 21 - £16
Under-16s* - £13
Family Area
Adults - £18
Senior Citizens (60+) - £12
Ages 16 to 21 – £10
Under-16s * - £5
Family Ticket ** - £36
* All children aged 11 or under must be accompanied by someone aged 18 or above.
Cardiff City will be happy to help any Rams supporters who have any questions or ticket queries ahead of the game.
Full details can be found on their website, which is cardiffcityfc.co.uk.
LAST TIME OUT IN WALES
CARDIFF CITY 0-2 DERBY COUNTY
Tuesday 27th September 2016
Two second half goals saw Derby County end their six-game wait for a win in the Sky Bet Championship as they recorded a comfortable 2-0 win over Cardiff City just over a year ago.
Whilst there was not a lot in the match over the first half, Tom Ince got the ball rolling 10 minutes after the interval with a low shot, before Nick Blackman scored his first competitive Rams goal from the penalty spot after Matthew Connolly had been given his marching orders for hauling him down.
It represented Derby’s second league win of the 2016/17 campaign as they ended a run of eight matches in all competitions without a win.
Cardiff City: Amos, Morrison (C), Richards, Whittingham, Ralls (Harris, 59), Immers (Manga, 85), Noone, John, Connolly, Lambert (Zohore, 13), O’Keefe
Substitutes not used: Wilson, Kennedy, Huws, Ajayi
Derby County: Carson, Christie, Keogh (C), Pearce, Lowe; Johnson, Butterfield, Hughes; Ince (Russell, 84), Anya (Weimann, 90), Vydra (Blackman, 76)
Substitutes not used: Mitchell, Bent, Baird, Wilson
WHO ARE THE MATCH OFFICIALS?
James Linington has been appointed to take charge of Derby County’s Sky Bet Championship clash away at Cardiff City this weekend, kick-off: 3pm.
Linington has officiated 12 games so far this term across the EFL, from which he has produced 47 yellow and four red cards.
His last Derby game came towards the back end of the 2016/17 campaign when he took charge of the Rams’ 1-1 draw with Preston North End at Pride Park Stadium.
In total, Linington has officiated eight matches involving the Rams over the last six years and was also the man in the middle when Derby travelled to Ninian Park in April 2011.
Linington will be assisted by Mark Russell and Robert Merchant on the lines, whilst Darren Handley has been appointed as the fourth official.
HOW CAN I FOLLOW THE ACTION?
Once again, supporters outside of the UK and Republic of Ireland will be able to watch every kick of the action from the Derby’s trip to the Cardiff City Stadium.
Here’s a breakdown of what you can expect from our #CCFCvDCFC Matchday Live production:
FRIDAY
- The Cardiff City Preview Show (6pm) Shane Nicholson and Marc Edworthy join Jack Woodward in the RamsTV studio to look ahead to Derby’s clash with the Bluebirds. Within this, supporters will also be able to watch highlights from our Under-23s’ Premier League Cup match against Birmingham City.
- The Pre-Match Press Conference (7pm) You have seen what they said in our interviews, but supporters will be able to see what Gary Rowett and Joe Ledley said to the local media ahead of Saturday's match in the Welsh Capital
- U23s Extended Highlights (7:30pm) Rams fans will be able to watch back all the key moments from the Under-23s’ meeting with Birmingham.
SATURDAY
- Matchday Live will begin with a pre-match show starting at 2:15pm ahead of the 3pm kick-off.
- Former Derby defenders Michael Johnson and Shane Nicholson join host Colin Gibson in the RamsTV studio to discuss the final talking points and team news ahead of the Derby’s meeting with Neil Warnock’s Cardiff.
- Our ‘Matchday Live’ production will be the only supporters will be able to catch Gary Rowett’s final pre-match thoughts ahead of kick-off.
- If you are based in the UK and Republic of Ireland you will be able to listen to live audio commentary from BBC Radio Derby, whilst overseas subscribers will be able to watch every kick of the action – with Jack Woodward and Darren Bent providing commentary.
SUNDAY
- Match Highlights and the full Matchday Live show will be available to view for supporters in the UK the day after each first-team fixture on 12pm across dcfc.co.uk and RamsTV.
MONDAY
- The Cardiff City Review Show (6pm) Colin Gibson is joined in the RamsTV studio by Marc Edworthy and Shane Nicholson to review the Rams’ meeting with Cardiff and the second-part of the 2017/18 season.
The new RamsTV streaming service is available to all supporters who register on our new-look website dcfc.co.uk.
To access the full RamsTV streaming service will cost the following:
First-Team Match Streaming (outside UK) - £110 annual subscription or £12.50 per month
First-Team Audio Commentary (worldwide) - £45 annual subscription or £5 per month
A link to our packages can be found here.
The two premium services are in addition to the regular pre-match and post-match interviews on RamsTV.
Supporters will also be able to follow all of the action, as usual, across our Match Centre and social media channels.
We will be providing behind the scenes content across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, where we will also provide a blow-by-blow account of proceedings at Cardiff City Stadium.