3/1 To Win
Derby County midfielder Graeme Shinnie believes he is nearing full match fitness after recovering from a hamstring injury which ruled him out of action for two months.
The 28-year-old limped out of Derby’s 1-0 victory over Preston North End after just 15 minutes back in November.
Shinnie went through a long rehabilitation programme to ensure his hamstring was back to full working capacity before resuming full training.
He made his comeback as a substitute against Stoke City in a 4-0 victory at Pride Park Stadium at the end of January, whilst five days later, he started in Derby’s 4-2 Emirates FA Cup Fourth Round replay victory over Sky Bet League Two side Northampton Town.
After two more appearances off the bench against Swansea City and Huddersfield Town, Shinnie made his first start in the league since his injury in Friday’s 1-1 draw against Fulham.
He lasted the full 90 minutes and felt no ill effects from the injury which had sidelined him for a sustained period of time, and he believes he is nearing to being back to his best.
“It was good. I waited patiently and I felt that I needed it in my comeback from injury,” he told RamsTV.
“I have played bits and pieces here and there, 90 minutes against Northampton and I have come on a few times but I feel to get my form back to where it was and to get my fitness back up, I need the games as much as I can.
“It is strange because I have never witnessed it before. I have never really had an injury like that before and it is a little bit like pre-season.
“It is like coming back, I was out for about ten weeks and it is getting a feel for the ball, getting a feel for your positioning on the pitch.
“I can do as much running as I want on the training ground, I am naturally quite fit, but going into a game is completely different.
“To get back to where I was, I knew it was going to take me a few games, but we are getting back there.
“I was delighted to play, disappointed that we couldn’t get the three points, but we move on to Tuesday night and hopefully I can play again.”
The Rams now face back-to-back away fixtures against Queens Park Rangers and Sheffield Wednesday this week.
It’s the relentless nature of the Sky Bet Championship where games come thick and fast, and it is something Shinnie has had to adapt to.
“I have realised being down here,” he said. “I think it is even stranger if you don’t have a midweek game.
“We have two away games and it is against two teams who are in and around us, so it is vitally important that we pick up some good results.
“They will be very difficult games, especially away from home. Our away form needs to improve so we are looking forward to the game on Tuesday.
“I thought we played well on Friday and was disappointed not to get the three points. We need to take the positives from that onto Tuesday.”
