Derby County’s preparations for the resumption of the 2019/20 Sky Bet Championship season took another step forward Saturday afternoon.
Phillip Cocu’s side took on fellow Championship side Stoke City at Pride Park Stadium in two separate training matches.
The two 90-minute games allowed as many players as possible from both sides to get vital match minutes into their legs ahead of the season re-starting next weekend.
After a three-month break, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, Derby will return to action with a trip to Millwall on Saturday 20th June (1pm kick-off).
The training matches also provided the chance for both sets of players to become accustomed to playing in stadiums without supporters, as all fixtures for the remainder of the campaign must be behind-closed-doors.
Derby’s players resumed training, under the EFL’s Return to Training protocols at the end of May.
They have been able to step up from small group training, observing social distancing, to contact training earlier this month which requires minimising any unnecessary close contact.
Strict medical protocols have been enforced across the club to ensure the safest environment possible for players and staff members, who are tested for COVID-19 on a regular basis under the EFL’s guidelines.
Speaking to RamsTV after the training matches against the Potters, Cocu says he is happy with Derby’s work as they prepare to return to competitive fixtures.
He said: “It was very important today and almost all of the players could play 90 minutes.
“It has been a few months without games and while we have had training sessions, it is important to have a game again.
“We are happy we could play Stoke with two games in one day.”
He added: “We have one week now before the restart, where there will be no crowd or fans.
“It was important to prepare as players and staff and also at the stadium as well for what we have coming up in the weeks ahead.”