David Prutton has delivered his prediction for the Championship clash between Huddersfield Town and Derby County on Monday night.

Huddersfield will be hoping to challenge for promotion this season following their relegation from the Premier League last term, while Derby will also be hoping for a successful campaign under new manager Phillip Cocu.

It promises to be an entertaining game at the John Smith's Stadium and both teams will be determined to get off to a good start.

Sky Sports pundit Prutton has predicted a 2-1 win for Huddersfield on their return to the Championship and a defeat for Cocu in his first league game as Derby manager.

"Huddersfield have had a long time to prepare for this campaign, because they were pretty much assured of relegation for most of 2019," Prutton told Sky Sports.

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"They look in decent shape, have kept together a lot of their squad and in Karlan Grant they look to have the goalscorer they perhaps lacked the last time they won promotion.

"It is all change again at Derby. Frank Lampard is gone and Phillip Cocu has got a big job on to bolster the squad following some key departures in the summer. Home win."

Derby made it to the Championship play-off final under Frank Lampard last season, but just missed out on promotion, losing to Aston Villa in the final at Wembley.

Cocu took charge at Pride Park last month after Lampard left to join Chelsea and the Dutchman has already brought in three new players, as he looks to put his own stamp on the squad.

The Verdict

This is a tough one to call. I'm expecting both teams to challenge for the play-offs this season and both of them will be determined to get off to a good start. I think it'll be a close game on Monday night and I'm predicting a draw.

It was always going to be difficult for Derby to replace Lampard, especially given the success he achieved at the club last season, but I think Cocu could be a great appointment for the Rams.

As for Huddersfield, they've managed to keep hold of most of their key players from last season and as Prutton pointed out, they've now got a goalscorer in Karlan Grant, so they've got a good chance of challenging for the top six.