Southampton pre-season opponents profile: Derby County

Southampton travel to the Midlands on Saturday to face Derby County at Pride Park in what will be their third pre-season game.

Mark Hughes saw his Southampton side claim a win and a draw against Schalke and Jiangsu Suning respectively during their tour of China, and will hope for further progress up until the start of the 2018/19 season.

A tough test in the form of Championship side Derby County comes next and it has been a intriguing summer for the Rams themselves.

After former boss Gary Rowett left for Stoke City, Frank Lampard was handed the reigns and a big challenge in his first managerial role as the club look to finally gain promotion back to the Premier League.

Each of Steve McClaren, Paul Clement, Nigel Pearson and Rowett have tried and failed to push the Rams the final step towards the top-flight and ultimately been sacked as a consequence.

Next: Manchester City revive interest in Saints midfielder Mario Lemina

DERBY, ENGLAND – MAY 06: A view of The iPro Stadium home of Derby County FC during the Sky Bet Championship match between Derby County and Barnsley at iPro Stadium on May 6, 2018 in Derby, England. (Photo by Tony Marshall/Getty Images) /

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Their last Premier League campaign was rather forgettable for the club as they managed only one win and collective 11 points, and were subsequently relegated after just one season.

In 2017/18, the club finished in 6th place in the Championship table and qualified for the play-offs but were beaten by eventually promotion winners Fulham in the two-legged semi-final.

Lampard’s side have played two pre-season friendlies so far against Notts County and Mansfield Town; winning 4-1 away in the first and losing 1-0 in the second of those clashes.

They last played host to Saints in the 2011/12 season and the match ended in a 1-1 draw. Nigel Adkins’ visiting side went on to gain promotion whilst Derby finished in 12th place.

The Rams’ current squad contains some notable players and bags of top-flight experience. Former England goalkeeper Scott Carson, Welsh international Joe Ledley, Tom Huddlestone and Curtis Davies are key parts of their team.

The high-profile arrivals Harry Wilson and Mason Mount are seen as something of a coup for Lampard’s side after their loan moves from Liverpool and Chelsea were completed this week, and both players could be involved against Saints.

Derby have been champions of the English first division on two occasions. Their first triumph came in 1972 when they were managed by Brian Clough, and they then won the league again in 1975.

Clough was one of most successful managers in the club’s history but also had tremendous success as close rivals Nottingham Forest. There is now a road that links the two cities named after him.

Derby’s current stadium of Pride Park holds 33,597 spectators and was opened in 1997 as the club moved from their long-term home of the Baseball Ground.