Leeds United v Derby County Betting Tips: Plenty of goals tonight?
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Betting preview and odds for Championship tie
Derby County will be out for revenge tonight, as they face a Leeds United side who strolled to a 4-1 win in the reverse fixture at Pride Park in August.
Plenty has changed since then, with Marcelo Bielsa’s side now sitting atop the Championship table. They could extend their lead over Norwich City to five points here – if they can halt a three-match losing run.
The Rams, on the other hand, are looking to build a seven-point gap between themselves and seventh-placed Nottingham Forest. We’re all set for a cracker at Elland Road, and you can watch it all on Sky Sports Main Event from 7:45pm.
Head-to-Head
Lampard’s second match in charge of Derby provided the ex-Chelsea ace with a rude awakening. Bielsa’s men blew the Whites away through Mateusz Klich, Ezgjan Alioski and a Kemar Roofe double as the Whites continued their winning start to the season with a comprehensive 4-1 win.
That was their first win in three meetings with Derby, and only their fourth in total since 2006.
Likely XIs
Tom Huddlestone came off the bench for Derby against Middlesbrough on New Year’s Day. The midfielder could be restored to the starting line-up here in place of Martyn Waghorn.
Harry Wilson would then push forward and join Jack Marriott and Florian Jozefzoon on the right side of the front three. Lampard is expected to set his side up in a 4-3-3 system.
Leeds should go for something similar, with Aapo Halme set to retain his place at the heart of defence after deputising for the suspended Kalvin Phillips at Queens Park Rangers last week.
Jack Clarke could also replace Jack Harrison on the left of a five man midfield, which would see Roofe play as the lone front man in a 4-5-1 formation.
Key Battles
The Whites are pretty good going forward. But they’ve shown weakness at the back. Derby’s forwards would be well advised to exert pressure on the inexperienced Halme and under-fire goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell. Wily striker David Nugent could be an important weapon off the bench in that regard.
At the other end, Roofe is in splendid form. He’s the key component in United’s attack, which also boasts the bustling trio of Alioski, Pablo Hernandez and Klich. A defensive unit which has conceded 10 goals in four Championship games will need to remain strong – starting with midfield mop Adam Forshaw.
Match Odds
Bielsa’s men are odds-on favourites to keep the points in South Yorkshire at 20/23. Derby are available at 29/10, with a third draw in seven meetings between the pair priced up at 13/5.
The in-form Roofe leads the goalscorer betting at 23/20. You can back him to net his third Elland Road brace since the start of December at 7/2. Klich is a 16/5 chance to get on the scoresheet, with Marriott and Nugent 21/10 apiece for the Rams.
Both sides have plenty of attacking options, and we make Both Teams to Score a 4/6 shot here.
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All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing
