The East Midlands derby returns this weekend as Nottingham Forest host Derby County at the City Ground.

It's a game that certainly doesn't need any introduction or added spice but it looks as though the flames have been fanned in recent days ahead of kick-off on Sunday.

Indeed, earlier this week Kenny Burns fired a shot at the Rams - as quoted by the Nottingham Post - where he said that they were starting to worry about even making the play-offs this season:

"I can already hear them sniffling, like they’re about to start crying.

"It wasn’t that long ago that Derby fans were dreaming of a top two finish in the Championship, but now it looks like a lot of them are starting to fear they might even miss out on the play-offs."

Certainly, that should be enough to motivate any Derby players if they weren't fired up already whilst it looks as though Gary Rowett is more than ready to take on any barbs coming his way.

As quoted by the Rams' official Twitter account, he said:

Clearly, then, there's no love lost between Burns and Rowett and the Derby boss will be looking to prove a point with a win at the City Ground on Sunday.

The Verdict

Burns didn't really need to stoke things up and it'll surely only spur on Derby ahead of this game.

The Rams haven't been in great form of late compared to their promotion rivals but that doesn't usually matter in matches like this and it should come down to who wants it more.

Thoughts, Rams fans? Let us know below!

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