Paul Warne learns harsh Derby County lesson as lack of goals leads to striking conclusion
Josh Holland debates the big talking points from the Rams 1-1 home draw with Shrewsbury Town and a missed promotion opportunity
Derby County ‘s 1-1 draw with Shrewsbury Town must have felt more like a defeat after two precious points were dropped in their bid to win promotion from League One.
Having gone ahead early in the second-half through Max Bird, the Rams looked to be cruising towards another win on the road to a return to Championship football. But Shrewsbury threw a huge spanner in the works with an 87th-minute equaliser at Pride Park from Aaron Pierre, his first goal since April.
With leaders Portsmouth edging a win at Carlisle, Derby are now six points off top spot in League One, albeit with a game in hand. But the Derby frustrations were there for all to see at full-time, especially after Curtis Nelson hit the Shrewsbury crossbar in the 93rd minute.
Derby attention will swiftly turn to Tuesday night’s trip to Exeter City, but there are valuable lessons to learn from a lost opportunity against strugglers Shrewsbury. Josh Holland has been looking at the big talking points from the game…
No clinical touch
The frustration when referee James Bell put an end to the first-half was clear from every supporter inside Pride Park, Paul and Warne in the Rams dug-out. Derby managed only two shots in the first half and their xG (expected goals) was just 0.29, with 0.27 coming from set-pieces – which saw Conor Hourihane’s free-kick miss everything.
Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, James Collins and Joe Ward all failed to hurt Shrewsbury in the opening 45. For a team challenging for promotion, expectations are higher and the lack of threat would have frustrated Warne. It is a recurring theme for this Rams team and one that highlights the failure to bring in a striker during the January transfer window.
The change at half-time that saw Tom Barkhuizen replace Ward was a clear indicator of Warne’s thoughts on his side’s first-half efforts. The substitute was exactly what they needed with Mendez-Laing going out to the left and producing a number of dangerous balls within eight minutes.
