Around 3,000 Baggies fans will make the journey to Pride Park on Wednesday evening, as West Bromwich Albion look to build momentum and kick on with their season against Derby County.
Albion haven’t beaten the Rams since the 2020/21 promotion season, when Slaven Bilić’s side secured a 2-0 victory behind closed doors during the Covid-19 lockdown. Since then, Derby have continued to frustrate the Baggies, including a meeting during the Rams’ period under administration and Wayne Rooney, when they still managed to come out on top.
There was at least some late drama last season at Pride Park, as Chris Mepham popped up deep into added time to rescue a point for Albion. However, that result extended another unwanted statistic — the Baggies haven’t actually won at Pride Park since 2003.
So, with a huge travelling support expected in Derby, Wednesday presents Albion with the chance to finally put an end to their long-running hoodoo against the Rams and turn the backing from the stands into a much-needed three points.
Player To Watch – Derby County
Derby County have a couple of familiar faces within their ranks, with former Baggies Alex Mowatt and Charlie Taylor both now representing the Rams.
However, my player to watch for Wednesday evening is Alex Mowatt.
Mowatt knows Albion well, having spent several seasons at The Hawthorns, and his experience and understanding of the Championship make him a player the Baggies will need to keep a close eye on. His ability to dictate the tempo from midfield, pick out passes and arrive in dangerous areas means he can influence a game without necessarily being the most obvious threat.
There’s also an added incentive for Mowatt when facing his former club, and Albion will need to be wary of the midfielder having one of those performances where he makes his presence felt from the middle of the park.
With the familiarity of facing plenty of his former teammates, Mowatt is my pick for Derby’s player to watch — and hopefully one the Baggies can keep quiet for 90 minutes.
Player To Watch – West Brom
Harry Whitwell is my Baggies player to watch heading into Wednesday night’s trip to Pride Park, and there’s plenty of reason to be excited about what the young midfielder can bring against Derby County.
Whitwell was excellent in Albion’s recent home games against Burnley and Watford, showing the energy, composure and determination that have made him such an exciting player to watch. He has looked increasingly comfortable at this level, competing well in midfield while also showing the confidence to get on the ball and make things happen.
His ability to cover ground and contribute both with and without possession could be particularly important at Pride Park. Derby are likely to make the midfield a battle, and Whitwell’s intensity could help Albion win those important duels and disrupt the Rams’ rhythm.
After impressive displays against Burnley and Watford, Wednesday provides another opportunity for Whitwell to show that he can perform consistently against strong Championship opposition.
With around 3,000 Baggies expected to make the trip, Whitwell will have plenty of support behind him — and if he can produce another performance like those we’ve seen recently, he could play a major role in Albion finally ending their long wait for a victory over Derby.
Line Up V Derby County
I’m keeping pretty much the same team, with Barney Stewart coming in for Heggebø as we look to end our long drought against Derby County. The rest of the XI remains unchanged, keeping the balance and familiarity that has served us well.
Stewart gives us a different option up front, and hopefully his energy and finishing can make the difference. It’s time to put the Derby hoodoo to bed and finally get that win.
Prediction V Derby County
Now for my prediction for Derby County. Last time, I got the scoreline correct for the second time this season, as we secured a 1-0 victory at The Hawthorns thanks to a Jimmy-Jay Morgan goal.
Now onto this game and see if I can get Wednesday night’s game correct, I think Derby would be dominant in the opening stages and around the 22nd minute mark Mowatt would have a free-kick and he delivers and another player to score past the Baggies and the 3rd player this season as he puts Derby 1-0 up.
It wouldn’t last long as 4 minutes later Harry Whitwell would lay off for Barney Stewart to go past one defender and get his first goal of the season to put the scoreline back level.
5 minutes before the break, Diakite would then interpret Derby’s attack and find Jimmy-Jay Morgan who would then beat two defenders to strike in to get his 4th Championship goal of the season and put the Baggies from behind to be in the lead at half-time.
Second half, the Baggies would try and hold on their lead they would try and make a 3rd but Derby would make a number of saves and near the end Derby would have a corner on the edge of added time but Max O’Leary would deny them a equaliser and then give us another three points and a 2-1 win at Pride Park marking it the first since 2003.
Prediction: Derby County 1-2 West Brom
Goalscorer for Derby County: Alex Mowatt
Goalscorers for West Brom: Barney Stewart, Jimmy-Jay Morgan
A 2-1 win here and we see Mowatt haunting the Baggies all before strikes from Barney Stewart and Jimmy-Jay Morgan that would give us a win. The second half be like the Watford game where we see no further opportunities as Derby would try and get an equaliser but in the end the Baggies would come out on top with a win.