Derby vs Oxford United Prediction: Rowett to haunt his former club

Derby County ended their seven-game losing streak in the Championship on Saturday with a late equaliser at Norwich City. They are on the hunt for a new head coach following Paul Warne's dismissal on Friday but it is looking likely that John Eustace of Blackburn Rovers is set to take over. The Rams welcome Oxford United to Pride Park on Tuesday (19:45, Sky Sports+) in their next fixture.

The U's have had a week to prepare for this contest and will look to bounce back from their 1-0 defeat at Burnley. Boss Gary Rowett returns to his old stomping ground and will be looking to upset his former club. Read on for my Derby vs Oxford United predictions, accompanied by the latest match odds and team news.

Derby vs Oxford United Odds

Derby have lost their last four home matches in the second tier but they are 5/4 to prevail on Tuesday.

Oxford United have drawn three of the five away matches Rowett has overseen in the league and the stalemate is on offer at 21/10, which has an implied probability of 32.3%. The U's have won one of those away fixtures, with four of their triumphs under Rowett have come at home. They are 5/2 (28.6%) to come away with the three points.

In Derby's last four home appearances in the Championship, at least one team has failed to score. BTTS No is marketed at 4/6, and this selection has struck in the visitors' previous two away clashes.

Football Odds

Team News

Derby are missing wing-back Kane Wilson and Dajaune Brown on Tuesday due to hamstring problems, while centre-back Curtis Nelson has been ruled out for the rest of the season with a knee injury.

After an improved performance at Norwich, we could see a similar lineup at Pride Park to face the Yellows. Sondre Klingen Langas, Nat Phillips and Matthew Clarke manned the centre of defence last time out, while Ben Osborn and Liam Thompson operated as wing-backs.

Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, Lars-Jorgen Salvesen and Kenzo Goudmijn all started against the Canaries in attack and are expected to do so again on Tuesday given Brown and Corey Blackett-Taylor are unavailable.

Oxford United have injury concerns of their own in Max Woltman, Ben Nelson and Elliott Moore, but asides from that the U's have a clean bill of health for their trip to the East Midlands.

Ciaron Brown and Michal Helik performed well in defence against Burnley last week despite the defeat, so this partnership is likely to continue in Derbyshire. Tom Bradshaw is in line to start up front ahead of Mark Harris, and the width should be provided by wingers Przemyslaw Placheta and Tyler Goodrham.

Oxford United to win @ 5/2 

Derby did well to end their losing streak but it took a stoppage time penalty for them to snatch a draw at Norwich, so they may not get that same fortune against Oxford United on Tuesday.

There is also the small matter that the Rams have been toothless at home in recent months, having failed to score in each of their past four home appearances in the Championship.

The visitors may have just one win on the road since Rowett took charge, but they will sense a great opportunity to collect a second at Pride Park given the current situation the hosts are in. The U's have been competitive in the matches they've played under the former Derby boss, and they currently sit nine points clear of the Rams as a result.

The loss to Burnley last week was the first league defeat the Yellows had suffered since Rowett was appointed in December, and they head into this fixture with a lot more structure than Derby, who are waiting on a new head coach to come in.

Oxford United have an excellent chance to give themselves some more breathing space from a side currently in the bottom three, and I believe they will take it.

Oxford United clean sheet @ 2/1

In the 10 Championship games the visitors have played under Rowett, they have kept clean sheets in four of them. This shows that there is value to be had in backing them to record a shutout in DE24 on Tuesday.

The Yellows have been much tougher to break down and let's not forget that they are coming up against a Derby side who have blanked in their last four league appearances on home soil, not to mention their equaliser from the weekend came from the penalty spot.

Offers

Acca Flex: Place a pre-match 5+ leg Football accumulator and get a CASH bonus up to 100% if all of your selections win or your money back as CASH if one leg lets you down

You can read all our latest Football Betting Tips at our dedicated Betfred Insights content hub.