Our prediction for this Championship match:
Cardiff City and Derby County go head to head at Cardiff City Stadium in a postponed Championship game. The Bluebirds aim to bounce back from a 1-0 loss to Fulham, but home win should not be considered as the visitors want this win more than the hosts, who are safe for now. To make things even worse for the hosts, all Uche Ikpeazu, Mark Harris, Alfie Doughty, Ryan Wintle, and Jordan Hugill have been struggling through illness of late.
The Rams, on the other hand, are fighting hard to secure yet another Championsip survival. Wayne Rooney’s troops are eight points behind the safe zone, which is probably the main reason why we are going to put our money on the visiting side. As for the visitors, captain Tom Lawrence remains on the sidelines through suspension, while Kamil Jowziwak has yet to recover from an ankle problem.
Highlighted Player (Leandro Bacuna):
Despite being born in Netherlands Leandro Bacuna decided to represent Curacao on international stage. The powerful midfielder, who parents are of Curacaoan descent, is a product of Groningen youth school and it has to be noted that he scored 14 goals in 109 appearances for the first team.
After ending his spell with Groningen, Leandro Bacuna joined Aston Villa in 2013 and he has been playing for the Villa Park outfit ever since. The Curacao international scored his first Premier League goal in September, 2013 against Manchester City, but seeing that Aston Villa coaches often used him as a full back he was not impressive in front of goal in previous seasons.
Leandro Bacuna was born in Groningen on August 21, 1991 and it has to be noted that he received his first call-up for the Curacao national football team 25 years later, in March 2016. The two teams played out a 1-1 draw in San Salvador, with Bacuna picking up a yellow card in the 54th minute of the game.
Highlighted Team (Derby):
Derby County is one of the 12 founder members of the Football League. However, nowadays the Rams compete in the Championship and they play their home matches at Pride Park Stadium. Derby County have won the two trophies in the English top flight (1971/1972, 1974/1975), with the team lifting the FA Cup trophy just after the World War II (1946).
Derby’s main rivals are Nottingham Forest, Leicester City and Leeds United, but the rivalry between Forest and Derby is regarded as the biggest one.
The two teams take on each other in the East Midlands derby. The colour of Derby’s shirts is white, whilst their shorts are black. It has to be noted that the club was founded in 1884 by William Morley. The Rams competed in the European competitions four times, but they did not record a notable result in the European Cups. The club’s chairman is Mel Morris.