Gary Rowett has described Derby County’s clash with Cardiff City tomorrow as a defining fixture, highlighting it as a brilliant opportunity for the club in the race for the play-offs.

Derby welcome Cardiff to the Pride Park Stadium in tomorrow evening’s rearranged fixture, as the Sky Bet Championship’s promotion race gathers pace.

The Rams are well out of form in the Championship, with Rowett’s side slipping out of the top-six in recent weeks and entering tomorrow evening’s fixture in seventh.

However, Derby’s play-off rivals aren’t in action, with tomorrow’s contest the Rams’ game in-hand.

Avoiding defeat against the Bluebirds will move Derby back ahead of Millwall in the race for sixth, with Rowett telling @dcfcofficial how important tomorrow evening’s fixture was:

Heading into tomorrow’s crunch clash, Derby are well out of form, having lost their previous three Championship fixtures.

Wolverhampton Wanderers, Burton Albion and Middlesbrough have all recorded victories over the Rams, leaving Derby needing to avoid defeat tomorrow to keep their fate in their own hands.

Following tomorrow’s visit of Cardiff, Derby travel to Villa Park to face Aston Villa, before welcoming Barnsley to the Pride Park Stadium.

The Verdict  

There is no getting away from how big tomorrow night’s clash is for Derby.

Rowett will know the importance of avoiding defeat, but victory has to be Derby’s aim, as the play-off race is too close to call.

It hasn’t been a good 2018 for the Rams, but they still have an excellent opportunity to achieve something remarkable if they break into the play-offs.

Derby fans… Let us know your thoughts!