Johnny Russell feels Derby County’s 3-2 victory over Reading was important for a number of reasons.
Off the back of consecutive Sky Bet Championship defeats to Norwich City and Leeds United, Steve McClaren’s side fought back from a goal to down their fellow promotion rivals at Pride Park Stadium.Not only that, but it is a victory that well and truly keeps the Rams in the play-off hunt, as they moved to within two points of the coveted top six and also saw them close the gap on Jaap Stam’s Reading to just three points.
Russell described the win as ‘crucial’ in his post-match interview RamsTV – especially after their slow start to the meeting.
The 26-year-old said: “We made it a bit difficult for ourselves at the end, but it’s a crucial three points for us in our fight to get back in the top six.
“They are a quality side. They are up there in the play-offs on their own merit, so it was important for us to get the result today.
“We can’t afford for teams to get away from us and that was the main thing for us today. Every game is a must win for us, but when you look at how well they are doing and the position in the table, it was vital not to let them get too far away from us.
“We’ve done that, we have clawed back some points and kept ourselves within reach of where we want to be.” Derby fell behind to John Swift’s close range finish after 16 minutes of the clash with the Royals, but equalised nine minutes before the interval as Darren Bent converted Richard Keogh’s cross.
The first goal proved particular important as the Rams fought their way back into the game and scored two second half goals through Tom Ince and Will Hughes – on his 150th Derby start – to take a commanding 3-1 lead.
Yakou Meite’s header from a corner did set up a grandstand finish, but after Jordan Obita was sent off for a second yellow card, the Rams held on.
Russell reserved praise for the invaluable role Bent and Ince have played in Derby’s rise up the table.
Out of the 23 goals that the Rams have scored in all competitions since McClaren's return, the duo have scored 14.
Russell said: “We felt their goal came out of nothing really. We did well to get back into the game through Benty (Darren Bent).
“We scored another great two goals after that in the second half. Their second goal was a little bit sloppy on our part – especially from a corner which we are usually so good at defending – but at the end of the day it is three points.
“Their goals have been a major factor in us being where we are. We don’t score nearly enough goals as a squad.
“I’m one of the main culprits for that, but the two of them have been brilliant. If they keep scoring goals that keep getting us wins then we will all be happy.”
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