Ben Osborn admits he’s enjoying life as a Derby County player ahead of the side's return to Pride Park Stadium against Norwich City on Saturday (12:30pm kick-off).
Midfielder Osborn received a standing ovation at Bramall Lane on Saturday when he returned to play against his former club Sheffield United as a spirited defensive display wasn’t enough for Derby to take points in a 1-0 defeat on the road.
Derby will be looking to keep their perfect home form going when they face the Canaries at Pride Park. A 1-0 win against Cardiff City a fortnight ago secured Paul Warne’s side their tenth consecutive win in all competitions on home turf.
Osborn joined his boyhood club when he linked up with Paul Warne’s squad in the summer as a free agent. He was on the books of Derby two decades ago as a youth player and has made four appearances for the Rams so far in the Sky Bet Championship this term.
Osborn sat down with RamsTV to discuss adapting to life with his boyhood club and gaining momentum in the Championship.
On the reception against his former club Sheffield United last Saturday…
It was good to see some old faces, especially the staff members who were there during my time with the club. I got a decent reception from the fans,t oo. You never know going back what reception you’re going to get and, to be honest, I did hear a couple of boos! They were completely outnumbered by the people clapping, so I was fairly confident that they'd respected what I'd done for the club, and how much effort I'd put in while I was there.
It was quite strange playing against Sheffield United so soon after leaving as well. To be fair, there'd been quite a lot of change in their squad. A lot of the lads that I played with for a number of years either left last year or the year before anyway. It wasn't too strange in that respect. Going into the ground and stuff like that was a bit weird, but it was enjoyable.
On Derby falling to defeat at Bramall Lane…
I thought in the first half it was going to plan - I know they had a couple of chances and Jacob made some good saves - but towards the end of the half I thought we were frustrating them and the crowd had quieted down. We were getting into some half-decent positions and then we seemed to continue that at the start second half, but then we lost the momentum once they scored and it was a bit of quality in the end that won them the game. We didn't create much going the other way, so it was frustrating. We do feel like we could have been a bit better on the day as well.
On adjusting to life at Derby County…
You adapt pretty quickly. It feels like I've been here quite a while already and I’m fully used to it now. It caught me off guard a few times when I was in the shop and being recognised and stopped all the time. That's going to happen now I, play for Derby! It's enjoyable, especially because we've had a half-decent start.
On the Rams' start to the season back in the Championship…
It’s not been a bad start. At home, we've looked really strong and solid. The Bristol City game was a highlight in terms of performances, as well as in spells against Cardiff as well. We could do with getting something on the board away from home. I feel like we are getting there.
But even after last Saturday, Sheffield United have got a really good side, they've had a really good start. However, we were disappointed at the end of the day to be coming in after losing 1-0. We've looked at the game and have been working on how we could have been better. As long as we keep improving, and improve away from home, and keep trying to be better at home and make it a fortress, then we can continue to progress.