3/1 To Win
Derby County continued their impressive run of form by cruising to a 3-0 victory against Barnsley at Oakwell on Saturday afternoon.
Tom Lawrence and Matej Vydra put the Rams in control in the first half before Andreas Weimann sealed the points with a stunning finish 12 minutes from time.
We took a look at the key numbers from an impressive Derby performance…
Clinical Showing
Gary Rowett’s side seemed to be in total control from start to finish on Saturday, despite the fact that Barnsley slightly edged possession and had more shots.
When Derby hit the target though, they made it count. Every attempt that the Rams had on goal found the net, whilst Barnsley failed to score with any of their four efforts on target.
Derby have had clinical spells so far this season, a trend that is demonstrated perfectly by their leading goalscorer…
‘I’ll Give It To Matej Vydra…’
The Derby away following came up with a Christmas-themed chant to pay tribute to their in-form forward, and he repaid their faith with a typically lethal performance.
One shot was all that Vydra needed to find the back of the net, and it extends his clinical record when he finds the target this term.
He’s now scored 12 goals from just 16 shots on target in the Sky Bet Championship so far this season, a truly remarkable run that gives him an overall shot conversion percentage of 43%.
Weimann Breaks His Duck
The Austrian has been in superb form since returning to the starting eleven against Queens Park Rangers, where he made two assists, and he got his name on the scoresheet for the first time this season at Oakwell.
After setting up the second goal expertly for Vydra, he made it three late in the second half after collecting Bradley Johnson’s header, before he fired home on the bounce from just outside the area.
It was his first Derby County goal since he found the net against Brighton & Hove Albion in May 2016, in a game that eventually finished 1-1 at the Amex Stadium.
Creativity From Full-Back
Chris Baird has been a picture of consistency since he came into the side away at Fulham in November, but he affected the game in a different way than we’re used to against Barnsley.
He ventured forward from his right-back position on more than one occasion, playing a crucial role in Vydra’s second goal, and no other Derby player made more than his three key passes during the game.
Midfield Metronome
Tom Huddlestone was rested for the visit of Burton Albion last weekend but he was brought back into the team by Rowett, and the midfielder responded with a typically assured display.
He went on to complete 50 passes altogether on Saturday; more than any other Derby player.
It’s his long-range accuracy that has especially caught the eye since he returned to Derby in the summer, and only Wolves’ Ruben Neves (149) has completed more long passes than Huddlestone (133) in the Championship so far this season.
