Derby still a great price to go up, but they won’t be for long

After one win in nine games, Derby County were on course for a surprise drop into League One. But with Nigel Pearson gone and Steve McClaren back for a second stint in the dugout, the Rams are now serious contenders for promotion.

And because of that slow start, the east midlands outfit are still an excellent price to go up at 4/1, with 40s for them to win the league.

Since Pearson departed, Derby have collected 23 points from ten games.

To put that into perspective, across a full 46-game season that totals a stunning 105 points – promotional certainty.

Steve McClaren returned to Pride Park in mid-October, and has quickly taken up where he left off.

Since the former Middlesbrough boss’ return, Derby have won six of their eight fixtures, with a sole defeat coming in a 1-0 loss at Huddersfield.

The run has seen Derby pick up an impressive six clean sheets, and only Brighton have conceded fewer than the Rams this term.

Alex Pearce and Richard Keogh have proved rock solid at the heart of the defence, with plenty of quality and experience behind them in stopper Scott Carson.

With Tom Ince starting to find his form in front of goal, and powerhouse forward Darren Bent rediscovering his scoring boots too, Derby look well stocked at both ends of the pitch.

And experienced duo Jacob Butterfield and Bradley Johnson are ensuring the Rams keep ticking along in the middle.

The result is Derby have won their last five fixtures and are by far the form team in the division.

With league favourites Newcastle losing their last two fixtures, and Brighton winning one of their last three, Derby are a not-insurmountable 11 points off the pace with 27 games still to run.

As already mentioned, they’re 40/1 to win the league – in from 100/1 a fortnight ago – with 11s saying they land an automatic promotion spot.

The Rams are 4/1 to go up by any means, with 11/10 saying they bag a play-off spot at the end of the season.

It’s a sign of McClaren’s impact that they’re already odds-on at 10/11 to land a top-six position, having been as big as 4/1 in September.

There’s still plenty of value to be had in backing the Championship’s form side, but you’ll have to move fast as Derby don’t look like slowing down anytime soon.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing