3/1 To Win
Liam Rosenior was left with mixed emotions following Derby County’s 0-0 draw at Shrewsbury Town on Tuesday night.
Despite the Rams enjoying the better of the League One contest, they were unable to turn their possession and dominance into goals against Steve Cotterill’s side on the road.
Rosenior was pleased with the way his side performed throughout and felt they did enough to come away with more than a point for their efforts.
Chances were limited throughout the opening 45 minutes in Shropshire, but it was Derby that had the better openings with Richard Stearman heading wide from a set play and Tom Barkhuizen forcing a good stop from Marko Marosi in the home goal.
A similar patter followed in the second period with Derby enjoying plenty of the ball, but the hosts defended well to limit Rosenior’s side when it came to clear attempts on goal, with Marosi claiming substitute McGoldrick’s header on his debut following his summer arrival from Sheffield United.
Fellow substitute Louie Sibley had an effort saved late on by Marosi as the Rams chased a late winner, while the hosts also spurned a chance of their own deep into added time, but they had to be content with a point on the road for the first time this season.
Rosenior spoke to RamsTV after the game at Montgomery Waters Meadow to offer his take on the 90 minutes and provide the latest from the Derby camp following their fourth league fixture of the 2022/23 League One campaign.
On The Game…
I’m disappointed because we had so much domination and control in both halves. We created numerous chances, but it just didn’t fall for us on the night. The goalkeeper makes some really good saves. I remember a chance for them, which came from us kicking the ball long as we were chasing the game but I felt we were the home team and they were the away team. We have to put teams to the sword. We have to be demanding of each other because the performance for 99% of it is what I wanted but we have to take the chances at the end of it.
On Dominating The Game…
We have to keep that belief. We are four games into the league season with a completely new group. I couldn’t be happier with what the players are trying to implement in such a short space of time. The cohesion and the understanding of the way we want to play gives us that control in games and the opportunity to create chances. We kicked the ball long in desperation in the last minute of the game and they get a chance from it, so that’s the thing. They were so tired from chasing us that I felt the goal was going to come in the last ten minutes. They had to sit deep and that’s why I had to bring David McGoldrick on because he’s great in tight areas. I need to manage his minutes too. Louie Sibley and Lewis Dobbin came on to give us the extra energy and pace and I have really good options from the bench which I’m not afraid to use.
On Being Patient…
We have to make sure in our desperation to score goals that we don’t lose the domination and control of the matches. It’s a fine line and I felt the last five minutes we got desperate and lost our foothold. It’s not just staying patient; it’s about getting the ball into good areas and going high at teams. We have got players who can beat players 1v1 and players who can play in tight areas. I’m happy with the performance but I’m frustrated with a point.
On The Options In The Squad…
I wanted some control of the game in the first 45 minutes and we should have been at least two goals up. That’s why I played with an extra midfield player and then in the second half I felt we needed to be a little bit more offensive without losing control. David McGoldrick came on and did that and I still think he’s going to show real moments of quality. That’s his first game in a long time but I have to give him minutes to get up to speed. Louie Sibley has been outstanding and was unlucky to miss out today from the start but it was purely tactical and Lewis Dobbin came on and was absolutely outstanding. I’ve got really good options which I’m happy with. We have to make sure we take advantage of the control and domination that we have.
On The Clean Sheet…
It’s seven points from four games but I want more. I think personally we should have 12 points from four games, so things are moving in the right direction. We can’t be too frustrated with what we do and the reason we kept a clean sheet today - I don’t know what the percentage of possession was - but we had the ball for so long. We had lots of positive aspects to our performance, however we just have to put the ball in the back of the net.
On Curtis Davies’ Injury…
He’s looking at around four weeks out, which is a big blow but I know the professional he is. He will be back doing everything he can to get back, but Richard Stearman has come in again and earned a clean sheet with a great performance. He headed and defended his box well and we are going to need the squad throughout the season. We are going to pick up injuries, so we are going to need the squad and reliable people to do the job and that’s what we’ve had in the last two games.
On Joseph Anang’s Signing From West Ham…
I’m really pleased with his addition. He is someone who completely fits with the way we want to play. He’s confident and has had an outstanding period of games on loan with St Patrick’s. We have monitored him for a long time and we are delighted to bring him in. He is a great character; he has fit in massively with the group and he’s going to be a huge asset to us moving forward.
