Despite failing to score in 15 games for Southampton, Ben Brereton Diaz believes that his loan club Derby County 'have enough' not only to overhaul Southampton but also to make a late charge into the Championship play-offs.
If that sounds just a little bit absurd to you, it is because it is. County have taken just six points from their last five matches. 1.2 points per game is closer to relegation form than to promotion momentum.
The stats don't stack up in the Chilean's favour
Unable to secure a place in the Southampton side, Brereton Diaz, who is contracted with Southampton until 2028, was loaned to Derby for the season. He has managed just five goals in 31 games across all competitions, one fewer than Ryan Manning and equal to Taylor Harwood-Bellis.
Playing in the Tom Fellows/Kury Matsuki role for Derby, the English-born Chilean has just three assists to his name. That leaves him lagging behind Fellows (4 assists), who has spent most of the season playing right wing-back!
Signed from Villarreal in 2024 for £7 million, Brereton Diaz has never been fully accepted at St Mary's. He was played on the left by Russell Martin in a short-passing, possession-based style, which hardly suited his strengths, and he looked out of his depth in the Premier League.
Now, with the Rams losing balance on their cloven hooves, it's hardly the right time for Brereton Diaz to start bleating about his loan side being superior to his parent club.
Promotion push tricky for the Rams
Derby may leapfrog the Saints temporarily at the weekend when they face bottom-side Sheffield Wednesday at home. After that, though, things get very tricky for the Rams with trips to Pompey, Millwall, Coventry, Southampton, and Norwich contributing to a difficult run of fixtures.
Brereton Diaz has described his current home in a very positive way after County saw off Blackburn Rovers 3-1 at Pride Park. “The fans are getting behind us. It's a great place to be, hunting it down. It's a special group in there.“
Back-to-back wins build momentum in this league, and Derby manager John Eustace has maintained that his team would “come good”. If his team pick up points on the road, the Rams could pull the wool over the eyes (sorry - puns intended) of not only the Saints but also sixth-placed Wrexham.
Looking objectively at the recent form of the teams in play-off contention, it is Southampton who have the momentum. If Tonda Eckert's side can maintain its form, Southampton are the team most likely to be guaranteed a play-off place.
It's clear that Brereton Diaz had to salute the efforts of his team-mates after a win, but to suggest that County have enough to get into the play-offs is just plain deluded.