Our under-23s could climb up to third in the Premier League 2 table on Monday night when they face Derby County at Loughborough University Stadium.
THE STORY SO FAR
Freddie Ljungberg’s side will be hoping to return to winning ways on Monday night after slipping to a frustrating 5-4 loss to Chelsea in their last PL2 outing.
We took the lead inside eight minutes through Bukayo Saka, but less than 10 minutes later Chelsea found themselves two goals to the good.
Strikes from Daniel Ballard and Eddie Nketiah drew us level before the break, but Conor Gallagher restored the visitors’ lead on the hour mark.
Two minutes later Nketiah popped up with what looked to be the all-important equaliser, but in the 82nd minute Billy Gilmour secured all three points for the Blues and ended our eight game unbeaten streak in the PL2.
We’re sixth in the table on 16 points, five adrift of league leaders Everton with a game in hand.
Only Manchester City (24) have scored more league goals than us this season (22).
THE OPPOSITION
The Rams are currently second in the table and they head into Monday’s clash full of confidence, having won each of their last four league outings.
They kicked off their winning streak with a 1-0 win over Brighton at home, before beating Liverpool 3-2 on the road. Following that they picked up a 1-0 win over Tottenham and a 2-0 victory against West Ham, helping them to close the gap on Everton to a single point.
They’ve kept five clean sheets in 10 PL2 fixtures this season, so we’ll need to be at our creative best if we want to break them down.
ONE TO WATCH
After scoring four goals in three games for England Under-18s, Tyreece John-Jules will be keen to maintain his fine form.
The 17-year-old opened his account from the spot in a 2-2 draw with the Netherlands, before coming off the bench to score a brace in a 3-1 win over the Republic of Ireland.
Our versatile forward then went on to break the deadlock in a 3-1 win over Belgium, meaning the Young Lions were crowned champions of the Pinatar Tournament.
John-Jules has scored six goals in 11 appearances in all competitions this season - averaging one every 151 minutes.
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