Derby County and Huddersfield Town square off in the Championship on Tuesday evening knowing that victory will put clear distance between themselves and the drop zone.

While the Rams and Terriers occupy 18th and 19th position respectively, Rotherham United having matches in hand means that neither side can afford any complacency if they want to avoid a relegation battle.

Match preview

Derby County manager Wayne Rooney pictured on January 23, 2021 © Reuters

Having witnessed Derby suffer two defeats in their last four fixtures, Wayne Rooney will recognise that his side have much work ahead if they want to avoid dropping into the third tier.

Nevertheless, collecting wins from the other two matches during that period means that the England legend can take the positives from pushing promotion contenders Watford on Friday night.

A quickfire double during the first half proved to be the difference at Vicarage Road, but Rooney will have been left impressed with how his Rams side remained in the game until the final whistle.

On the back of making multiple changes to his team, the former forward will also be satisfied that some of his players have clocked up some much-needed game time having regularly chosen a settled team.

Huddersfield Town's Duane Holmes scores their third goal against Swansea on February 20, 2021 © Reuters

While Derby were unable to record a surprise win against a team vying for a return to the Premier League, Huddersfield surprisingly dismantled in-form Swansea City on Saturday afternoon.

Despite facing opponents who had previously conceded just 15 goals in 28 matches, the Terriers scored four times in 55 minutes, ending the club's eight-match winless streak in emphatic fashion.

Huddersfield's home record has gone under the radar this season with Carlos Corberan's team having now prevailed in eight of their 16 fixtures at the John Smith's Stadium.

Their form on the road remains an issue, however, and you have to go back to October 31 for their last away success, when they got the better of Millwall.

Duane Holmes scored the first two goals of his second stint at Huddersfield on Saturday, a welcome boost as he prepares to face his former club.

Derby County Championship form: WWLWWL

Huddersfield Town Championship form: LDDLLW

Team News

Huddersfield Town manager Carlos Corberan reacts on January 16, 2021 © Reuters

Providing that he sticks with a 3-5-2 formation, Huddersfield boss Corberan is unlikely to make any alterations to his team.

However, Harry Toffolo is available again after suspension, while Isaac Mbenza will hope to be back in contention after injury.

Rooney could hand recalls to Derby duo Kamil Jozwiak and Lee Gregory after they dropped to the substitutes' bench against Watford.

While no risks were taken on Matt Clarke at Vicarage Road due to a hip injury, the centre-back is expected to replace George Edmundson on Tuesday evening.

Derby County possible starting lineup:
Marshall; Byrne, Wisdom, Clarke, Buchanan; Jozwiak, Bird, Shinnie, Waghorn; Kazim-Richards, Gregory

Huddersfield Town possible starting lineup:
Schofield; Vallejo, Keogh, Sarr; Pipa, Bacuna, Hogg, O'Brien, Rowe; Holmes, Campbell

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We say: Derby County 2-1 Huddersfield Town

Ahead of such an important fixture, both teams will set out to claim what could prove to be a season-defining three points come the end of the season. While the visitors will be on a high after the weekend, we expect Derby to show their extra quality in the final third over the course of the 90 minutes.

Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Derby County win with a probability of 37.81%. A win for Huddersfield Town had a probability of 33.89% and a draw had a probability of 28.3%.

The most likely scoreline for a Derby County win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.89%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (7.89%) and 2-0 (7.09%). The likeliest Huddersfield Town win was 0-1 (11.1%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.23%). The actual scoreline of 2-0 was predicted with a 7.1% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Derby County would win this match.