3/1 To Win
Midfielder Liam Thompson says Derby County have a platform of confidence to build on in the Sky Bet Championshipafter a recent upturn in form before the international break.
The Rams secured three wins on the bounce in the second tier, including at Plymouth Argyle in their last outing, where John Eustace’s side claimed a vital three points with a 3-2 success, and Thompson featured in his 100th senior match for the club.
Derby will look to carry on their momentum as they host Preston North End at Pride Park Stadium on Wednesday night (7.45pm kick-off).
The 22-year-old spoke to RamsTV to preview Derby’s home clash against the Lilywhites and talk about reaching a century of senior appearances in black and white.
On making his 100th senior appearance for Derby County…
It’s amazing and it means everything to me. Coming through the Academy makes it that bit more special to hit such a big milestone. I haven't really processed it, but it's just a real proud moment for me and to do it for this club is even better.
On his journey with the club and being resilient…
Football is full of ups and downs for everyone. The toughest time was obviously going on loan to Scunthorpe United, who were National League at the time. I just really wanted to play football. I was struggling to get in the team here and I don't regret it. It was another good experience for me. I saw the positives in it.
You've got to stay resilient, keep working hard and keep your head up because you never know when your opportunity is going to come. Like now, for instance, and you don't know whether it's because of an injury or other thing, but your time could come. Just being resilient is definitely the most important thing for me.
On three results giving a boost to the season, and keeping up momentum after the international break…
It's been nice, a lovely break. You could maybe say you didn't want it to come after the three results, but the lads feel in a really good place, physically and mentally.
We've been getting the results, but on the other hand, we've got a lot of work done with the gaffer and the coaching staff. We've had more time to spend with each other.
We’ve got to keep doing what we were doing before the break and keep the intensity up in training, which has been a big improvement. That's what's helped us get into games now.
We just have to pick up where we left off and not change for anyone. If we can focus on ourselves and worry about ourselves, we'll have no problems.
On the mentality boost heading into the final eight games…
It's incredible, the belief [in the group], especially after the three wins. Football can change so quickly. It's changed the whole picture and brought other teams closer to us. We're very confident, and we've got that belief throughout the squad. You can see it, especially in the last couple of games. That desire is there and it's the results that matter.
