3/1 To Win
Derby County inflicting a 5-0 victory over Hull City was the last thing that Lee Johnson wanted to see last Friday night.
So much so, that he had to turn the game off after the fifth goal went into the back of the net!
His Bristol City side host the Rams at Ashton Gate later today and they will go into the game with the aim of keeping Gary Rowett’s side at bay and retaining their unbeaten record on home soil.
Derby are a club that Johnson knows all about – given that the 36-year-old enjoyed a loan spell at Pride Park Stadium back in 2010 – and he believes, under Rowett, the club is finding its feet once again.
“I turned it off after about 50 minutes because I thought that this is no good,” Johnson told Bristol City’s official website.
“In all seriousness, they proved that they are a very good side and have a lot of good pedigree in the squad with the players that they have brought in and the ones that were there already.
“It’s a big club – I was lucky enough to play there for a month or (back in 2010) and I really enjoyed it.
“I am in no doubt that they are doing everything they can try and attain Premier League status and they are going about it in the right way.”
As well as the club, he also particularly knows one member of the Derby County squad very well.
He added: “It will be good to see him (Richard Keogh). He’s a great lad, as everyone knows, and is a real personality.
“He’s someone that I have stayed in touch with over the years from when we played together and we got on very well.”
The Rams’ opponents this weekend have only lost one game in all competitions so far this campaign.
That came against Birmingham City last month, but since then they have gone on claim notable positive results against the likes of Aston Villa, Reading, Wolves and Premier League Watford – the latter in the Carabao Cup.
Johnson is pleased with the level of resilience that his squad has shown so far this term.
He added: “To have only lost one game so far this season with the fixtures that we have had shows that we have got a level of resilience about us.
“I like that about my team. I find myself being able to go to sleep at night now because I know exactly what I am going to get from my team.
“The minimum standard is the work rate, but the margins are so fine so it is important that we stick together as a group and do everything we can to keep up what we are doing and what has got us 10 points from the first seven games.”
