Do you always play your best players?

[Suffolk Canary]

Wes and Redmond looked a different level to poor old huddersfield on saturday, but should they play against Derby? 

Being away to the best team in the league, many naturally think you should look to grind out a result, much like how we did at Wigan (which, to be fair, worked a treat). But now we have our quality players back firing, do they automatically go into the team? 

This is the classic argument of 'do we make the opposition change for our style, or do we change to contain them'. 

Personally, i would be a bit conservative and leave Wes out. While he was a cut above last week, he can very easily get muscled out of games against physical teams and derby are definitely physical.  

Redmond, however, should play. He has the flair we desperately lack at times, and he does sometimes help out defensively.  

I'd go:

                    Ruddy

Whittaker, Martin, Cuellar, Olsson

           Tettey, Johnson

Howson,   Hooper,  Redmond

              Jerome

 

[eatonparkboy]

Trouble is, that side is looking very similar to the side that has struggled recently. Have we really struggled in the last two matches? Yes teams have had chances but so does everyone in most games.

I don't see the point of risking Derby getting away from us in the first half. Keep it tight, that doesn't equate to boring, defensive but more possession. And if the possession is mainly in the opponents half then so much the better.

 

[The Great Mass Debater]

I think whether you are home or away makes a big difference. If you want to win the league you are expected to win your home games, which means we can expect Derby to expect to be able to win the game. For us I think we'd be happy with a draw with it being away.

Id prefer a resilient approach with some dangerous counter-attacking. it would be nice to out-nouse a team tactically

 

[Yellow Fever]

I agree. Soak up the pressure and then play quick, accurate balls into the channels for Jerome and Hooper to get on to like they did at Wigan. Wes and Redmond are available against tiring legs in the second half.