Looking to claim just their second win of the season, Derby County welcome Norwich City to Pride Park on Tuesday night in desperate need of a positive result to kick-start their Championship campaign.

The Rams suffered their 11th defeat of the season after being thrashed 4-1 by Millwall in London at the weekend, while the Canaries ended their three-match losing streak with a 3-2 home victory over fellow strugglers Watford.

Match preview

After finishing just four points outside the playoff places last season, a position that would have secured them a spot in the top six this time around, many expected Derby County to build on their progress under John Eustace and mount a more serious challenge for promotion back to the Premier League.

However, after 13 matches of the 2026-27 campaign, only one side has collected fewer points than the Rams, with the Derbyshire outfit sitting 23rd on seven points and having failed to win in more than two months.

Eustace's side travelled to The Den knowing they would face a difficult task against a Millwall team now just four points outside the top eight, but few would have anticipated such a disastrous start, with Derby finding themselves three goals down after just 17 minutes following a brace from Kyrell Lisbie.

The 4-1 loss was their third defeat in four matches, with increasing questions now being asked about Eustace's future as he prepares to take charge of his 78th game as Derby manager on Tuesday, hoping to get his side back on track before their situation becomes even more difficult.

Such has been the nature of their poor start to the campaign that even a victory on Tuesday night would not be enough to lift Derby out of the relegation zone.

As for Norwich City, they make the trip to Pride Park having endured a similarly disappointing start to the season, but appear to have turned a corner after securing back-to-back victories over Charlton Athletic and Watford.

Heading into their 12th Championship fixture, the Canaries sat 21st and just three points above Derby, but six points from their last two matches have lifted Philippe Clement's side to 15th, giving them a six-point cushion over the relegation zone.

Saturday's clash with struggling Watford looked set to bring another disappointing result at Carrow Road after Norwich fell two goals behind inside the opening 27 minutes, but a determined second-half performance provided further signs of a revival and eased the growing pressure on their Belgian head coach.

Goals from Ben Chrisene, Anthony Musaba and Paris Maghoma completed a remarkable comeback, moving Norwich closer to the playoff places than the bottom three and helping to restore a more positive atmosphere around the club.

Their previous victory over the Addicks had ended a six-match losing streak, while the weekend's success against the Hornets was their first home win in three outings, giving the Canaries renewed confidence ahead of their 14th match of the campaign.

Norwich make the trip to Derby for the first time in more than 12 months, having suffered a 1-0 defeat at Pride Park last season before appointing Clement in the following weeks.

Derby County Championship form:

Norwich City Championship form:

Team News

Given Derby's dismal run of form, Eustace may have been considering changes regardless, but further injury problems mean he will have even fewer options available for Tuesday's encounter.

David Ozoh was forced off in the first half against Millwall with a muscle injury and is expected to miss this match, with Alex Mowatt the most likely candidate to replace him in midfield.

The injured midfielder will join Craig Forsyth, Derry Murkin, Charlie Taylor, Eiran Cashin and Sondre Langas on the sidelines.

As for Norwich, they will be without Papa Amadou Diallo, Ali Ahmed and Mohamed Toure for the midweek encounter, but Clement could name the same starting XI that completed the comeback against Watford.

With Australian forward Toure sidelined since the end of September, Mathias Kvistgaarden is expected to continue leading the line in his absence as he looks to add to the three Championship goals he has scored this season.

Derby County possible starting lineup:

W. Zetterstrom; Johnston, Nyambe, Robinson, Hedges; Mowatt, Clark; Brewster, Szmodics, Meister; Morris

Norwich City possible starting lineup:

Grimshaw; Stacey, McConville, Cordoba, Chrisene; Wright, Field; Brooks, Maghoma, Musaba; Kvistgaarden

We say: Derby County 2-2 Norwich City

Norwich head to Pride Park as favourites after putting their poor start behind them with successive victories, particularly given the struggles of a Derby side who have won just once all season.

However, with the Rams desperate to turn things around and the visitors still looking to build consistency, we expect a closely contested encounter in which the spoils are shared.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.