Darren Bent has warned his Derby County teammates they can’t afford to gift Cardiff City a start in their Sky Bet Championship clash tonight, reports the Derby Telegraph.

Derby found themselves 3-0 down at half-time on Saturday, when they faced Bristol City and were roundly booed from the field at the break.

However, Bent led a second-half fightback which saw Steve McClaren’s side pick up a valuable point, drawing 3-3.

The former England striker, who scored twice in Saturday’s comeback, warned his side: "We need to cut out these slow starts. We don't know why it happens but we're one of the better sides in the division and if we want to get promoted, we can't have slow starts.

"If you play against the top teams and you go 3-0 down, you don't come back.”

Derby face a Cardiff City side who will be full of confidence following a shock 2-0 victory over Leeds United at the weekend.

Neil Warnock’s side have slowly pulled away from the relegation zone, following the 68-year old’s appointment in October, now sitting ten points clear of the bottom three.

Steve McClaren’s side are currently eighth in the Championship, and lost ground on the top-six following their two dropped points on Saturday.

The Rams are now six points behind Sheffield Wednesday, who occupy the last Play-Off spot.

Derby fans… Do you think your side will get the better of Warnock’s Cardiff tonight? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!