Derby County made a return to winning ways in the Championship yesterday as they secured all three points in their clash with Stoke City.

The Rams opened the scoring at Pride Park in the 31st minute as Max Bird scored a spectacular goal.

Curtis Davies then doubled Derby's advantage as he headed home from Graeme Shinnie's cross.

Whilst Tom Ince did reduce the deficit by netting his first goal of the season in the second-half, Stoke were unable to break down the Rams during the closing stages of the game.

With the dust having now settled from this particular fixture, here are THREE things that we clearly learnt about Derby after their 2-1 victory over Stoke.

Max Bird should be a mainstay in the club's starting eleven

Soccer Football - Championship - Peterborough United v Derby County - Weston Homes Stadium, Peterborough, Britain - August 14, 2021 Derby County's Max Bird and Colin Kazim-Richards in action with Peterborough United's Jorge Grant Action Images/John Sibley EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club /league/player publicati

A stand-out performer for Derby in yesterday's showdown with Stoke, Bird managed to illustrate why he should be a mainstay in the club's starting eleven.

As well as scoring a superb goal for his side, the midfielder made two tackles during the game and completed 84.4% of his passes as he recorded a WhoScored match rating of 7.44.

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By featuring regularly for Derby this season, Bird could potentially make considerable strides in terms of his development.

Derby's home form will be vital this season as they look to stay in the Championship

DERBY, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 23: General view inside of the stadium ahead of the Sky Bet Championship match between Derby County and Huddersfield Town at Pride Park Stadium on February 23, 2021 in Derby, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

With Derby now set to enter administration as a result of their ongoing financial issues, they are in line to receive a 12-point deduction.

Now set to face an uphill battle to secure survival this season, the Rams may need to turn Pride Park into a fortress if they are to have any chance of retaining their place in the Championship next year.

 

 

Having secured their first home league victory on Saturday, Derby will now be determined to pick up positive results in-front of their supporters on a regular basis in the coming months.

This particular group of players possess a tremendous amount of character

Soccer Football - Championship - Derby County v Nottingham Forest - Pride Park, Derby, Britain - August 28, 2021 Derby County's Curtis Davies Action Images/Craig Brough EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or "live" services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further details.

Derby's players managed to illustrate a great deal of character yesterday as the uncertainty surrounding the club could have had a major impact on their performance against Stoke.

However, the Rams delivered a professional display to secure an eye-catching victory over a Potters side who are currently fifth in the Championship standings.

If Derby continue to fight for results during the remainder of the 2021/22 campaign, their players will earn a great deal of respect from the club's supporters.