Shaun Barker has sent his former team, Derby County, a “strange” warning before their pivotal season-ending match against Carlisle United.
Derby County is about to secure their return to the Championship. In any case, The Rams will finish in the top two if they only manage a point against relegated Carlisle.
Nerves will undoubtedly be running high at Pride Park on Saturday even though Derby’s relegation seems inevitable, with Opta giving Bolton Wanderers a 0.8% chance to steal second place.
There have been many years of hurt for Derby supporters, especially during the Mel Morris era when the team finished in the top 10 of the Championship eight times in a row between 2012 and 2020.
The Rams finished in the play-offs in four of those seasons, but they were unable to cross the finish line and make it to the Premier League.
The most painful one was Derby’s 2-1 loss to Aston Villa in the 2019 play-off final, which led to their financial problems collapsing right before their eyes.
Shaun Barker warns Derby County before their match against Carlisle
Shaun Barker, a former defender for Derby County, has warned Derby ahead of their matchup with Carlisle.
As a lifelong fan of the team, Barker appeared in over 100 games for The Rams from 2009 to 2012, making him a qualified source to discuss the team’s current standing in the standings.
The 41-year-old has maintained that Warne’s team must defeat Carlisle United, who have already been demoted, in order for them to go down in football history because he thinks stranger things have happened in the sport.
Barker stated on RamsTV, “We have seen bigger turns and twists than this in football. We have seen some strange things.”
He is aware of the closeness between them and the amount of work that has gone into the season for everyone involved with the football team, including the players, staff, and behind-the-scenes workers in addition to the fans.
“Many efforts have been made to reach this point, not just this season but also the seasons that came before it.
“We still have one game left against the bottom team in the league; they have already been demoted, so it’s up to us to win it.”
Derby County shouldn’t take the opportunity.
Derby is about to accomplish something exceptional, and since this will be many players’ first opportunity to advance, it’s difficult to ignore the prize money.
The more seasoned players, like Nathaniel Mendez-Laing and Conor Hourihane, have already been promoted from Aston Villa and Cardiff City, respectively.
They are aware of how to handle this circumstance; Hourihane has already disclosed that his teammates have experienced an increased sense of composure in recent weeks.
Following their goalless draw against Wycombe, Derby secured victories and clean sheets against Leyton Orient and Cambridge United, demonstrating their composure on the field.
With any luck, including support from more seasoned teammates, Warne’s team should be able to maintain a similar composure throughout the game, and Derby should be regaining their Championship spot against Carlisle.
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