MatchDay Preview: Leicester City vs. Derby County Friday, 12th Nov 2010 09:47 by Mick McDermott The Rams road train rolls into Fox territory and after proving they have little to fear on their travels, perhaps they can add some pelts to their booty of points.
Leicester City vs. Derby CountySaturday 13th November 2010 15:00 The Walker Stadium - Leicester
Leicester v Derby - Historical P 49 W 16 D 20 L 13 F 57 A 60 Last game at The Walkers Stadium 17/10/09 Leicester 0 - 0 Derby County Recent History Ipswich 17/24 P 16 W 5 D 4 L 13 F 21 A 19 Leading scorers: King (6) Derby 4/24 P 16 W 8 D 3 L 5 F 29 A 17 Leading scorers: Commons (9) The Rams It was another away victory at Ipswich against a team that we've struggled with in recent times. These are heady days for the Rams. Most fans are scared to pinch themselves in case it's a ‘Dallas’ style dream. Many fans thought we might have struggled once Hulse had gone. We haven't - in fact we've got better. Kuqi and Bueno may not have been the first choice for Clough however they've made an incredible difference to the team. It's not all about Kuqi and Bueno though as there's confidence throughout the team. The board and Clough must be wondering how to go on from here. Kuqi is a short term loan but Nigel is already thinking about how he can get his loan extended with discussions apparently already taking place with the Swans. Some may think we should invest the money we got for Hulse, however the last time we spent money in January to improve a promotion chasing team, we ended up making it worse! At the start of the season, most fans would have accepted mid-table. A few more victories may have us chasing automatic promotion. Many will say that it's too soon but in football you get nothing for prevarication (to stray from or evade the truth, it's ok i didn't know either - Ed). That also goes for Kris Commons and his contract. Clearly he wants an improved contract and that may break the wage structure the board has set. Do we let him go in January instead of an improved contract? It’s all about ambition. Probable Team: Fielding Brayford ,Leacock, Barker, Moxey Bailey, Savage Green, Cywka, Commons Kuqi Subs - Deeney, O’Brien, Roberts, Pringle, Doyle, Addison Current Squad No. Position Player 1 Keeper Stephen Bywater 2 Defender John Brayford 3 Defender Gareth Roberts 4 Midfield Paul Green 5 Defender Shaun Barker (vice-captain) 6 Defender Dean Leacock 7 Striker Steve Davies 8 Midfield Robbie Savage 9 Striker Shefki Kuqi (on loan from Swansea City) 10 Midfield Kris Commons 11 Midfield Stephen Pearson 12 Striker Chris Porter 13 Keeper Saul Deeney 14 Defender Russell Anderson 15 Midfield David Martin 16 Midfield James Bailey 17 Defender Jake Buxton 18 Midfield Ben Pringle 19 Striker Tomasz Cywka 20 Defender Miles Addison 21 Defender Dean Moxey 23 Striker Conor Doyle 25 Defender Mark O'Brien 26 Striker Callum Ball 27 Striker Alberto Bueno (on loan from Real Valladolid) 28 Striker Luke Moore (on loan from West Bromwich Albion) 30 Keeper Ross Atkins 34 Keeper Frank Fielding (on loan from Blackburn Rovers) 35 Midfield Jeff Hendrick 36 Defender Kallum Keane 37 Midfield Ryan Connolly 38 Midfield Medi Abalimba 39 Defender Mitchell Hanson Leicester "I think we were a little lucky but we showed a lot of character to chase the equaliser at the end," said Sven Goran Eriksson to the Leicester Mercury. Eriksson was talking after Leicester rescued a draw with a last minute penalty - scored by ex-Ram Steve Howard. It was a controversial penalty - and unlucky for the Blades who had fought back from an early Leicester strike. Leicester seem to have a problem scoring - despite the bizarre statistic that they have more shots on target than any other team. Though what statisticians constitute as a shot on target is anybodies guess. Eriksson is pleased with the way Leicester have stabilized since he took over. They were in the relegation places and now have progressed up the league to 17th. "We are getting better and better and more and more confident. We are able to keep the ball better and I want to see the team go on playing as we did." Current Squad No. Position Player 1 Keeper Chris Weale 2 Defender Robbie Neilson 3 Defender Aleksandar Tunchev 4 Defender Michael Morrison 5 Defender Miguel Vítor (on loan from Benfica) 6 Midfield Moreno 7 Striker Paul Gallagher 8 Midfield Matt Oakley (captain) 9 Striker Steve Howard 10 Midfield Andy King (vice-captain) 11 Midfield Lloyd Dyer 12 Striker Matty Fryatt 13 Keeper Conrad Logan 14 Striker Martyn Waghorn 15 Defender Bruno Berner 16 Defender Kyle Naughton (on loan from Tottenham Hotspur) 17 Midfield Dany N'Guessan 19 Midfield Richie Wellens 20 Defender Michael Lamey 21 Keeper Carl Ikeme (on loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers) 22 Midfield Yuki Abe 23 Midfield Franck Moussa 24 Defender Curtis Davies (on loan from Aston Villa) 25 Defender Jack Hobbs 26 Defender Tom Parkes 27 Midfield Jorrin John 28 Striker Ashley Chambers 29 Midfield Liam Moore 30 Midfield Aman Verma 31 Striker Jeffrey Schlupp 32 Defender Greg Cunningham (on loan from Manchester City) 33 Striker Leon Crncic 37 Striker Darius Vassell 41 Keeper Robert Ambrusics What the bookies think Leicester are 21/20 on favourites for this game while the Rams are at a tempting 13/5. The draw is at 23/10 ... Hey wait - that's the same odds as the Ipswich game! Clearly the bookies don't watch the TV highlights Matty Fryatt and Martyn Waghorn are both at 5/1 for the first goal while Kris Commons is at 7/1. He's at 50/1 for a hat-trick. It has to happen sometime. Steve Howard is at 11/2 to score. Information for travelling fans Driving Take the M1 south to J21. Follow the A5460 into Leicester until you pass under the railway bridge then turn right into Upperton Rd and then right again into Filbert St. You can see the new ground from here. Or go on the train - it's a 15 minute walk. Parking There's on street parking or park at the rugby club. Just don't plan to get out quickly. Drinking If you go on the train you'll probably get herded into the Hind by the station. There are a few other pubs in the city centre. Sometimes the bar at the stadium is closed for this fixture so don't expect to get served in the ground. Mick's prediction Even though we keep winning it's still hard to believe. Optimism is growing among the fans and expectations are getting higher, at the same time I imagine that Clough is working hard to keep the players feet on the ground. It would be good to get a result against the Foxes - I think the Sven factor is still growing at the Walkers. Leicester 1-1 Derby Photo: Action Images Please report offensive, libellous or inappropriate posts by using the links provided.
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