3/1 To Win
Manager Frank Lampard does not want his side to become complacent as they prepare to travel to Hillsborough to face Sheffield Wednesday tomorrow afternoon (3pm kick-off).
Sheffield Wednesday have struggled for form recently and find themselves in 17th position in the Sky Bet Championship.
The Owls are without a win in five games and have not picked up a win since the start of October. They have also struggled for wins at home, winning only two games, both in the opening month of the season.
In contrast, despite the Aston Villa setback before the international break, the Rams have been in clinical form.
They have won three of their last five games and find themselves in the play-off positions.
However, Lampard wants his side to maintain their good form and not underestimate their opponents.
“Complacency will get you and if our levels drop then any team in this league can beat you,” he told RamsTV. “If there is a big positive out the game is that there is nothing given to you in the Championship.
“Teams will lose games – there isn’t a Wolves that are winning week in, week out, who are blowing teams out of the water – but we have to get as close to our standards that we can and if we do that, I firmly think we will be right up there.
“I hate those form guides because they can change. We have to understand the situation, they lost their last home game comfortably so we have to go there and think ‘how do we approach this’. We have to prepare right and then you try and make it difficult for the crowd and their players by producing ourselves.
“I’m not underestimating Sheffield Wednesday. I know they are a good team, they have got players who can hurt you. I watched them earlier in the season and they had some good games and I thought they were unlucky with some of the results they got.
“They were playing some good football and we can’t think that they are a team out of form. We have to understand that they can hurt us. Every team in this division can hurt you if you’re not at it so we will approach the game in the same way.”
The manager has received encouraging news regarding Mason Mount, Martyn Waghorn and Craig Bryson who have all recently spent time on the treatment table.
The trio could return to the matchday squad to face the Owls after short spells in the treatment room, while midfielder George Evans is back in training after three months out of action.
“They are all training so I’m hopeful they will be involved to whatever degree,” he admitted. “Some are more ready than others.
“I think George Evans still needs a bit more time in terms of an Under-23s game, maybe more training time but the other three are competing. Hopefully the other three will be in the squad but we just need to keep evaluating them.”
The Rams will be backed by around 3,000 fans in South Yorkshire and the manager praised their support.
“We are very fortunate with the support that we have,” he said. “The fans that travel, we certainly appreciate it and our responsibility is to try and perform for them.”
