Tomorrow we will witness the second away game of the league season for Swansea City who are currently two games unbeaten in the EFL Championship. Two thousand Swans fans will travel for an early kick off at Pride Park (12:30pm)

In the still very early days of the season, Derby fans want a win already. The season has started in tepid fashion, the squad is littered with injuries in key positions, and the summer business was underwhelming. Six of their next seven fixtures are against teams with realistic hopes of making the top eight. And that includes Swansea City.

A significant part of the bumpy summer can be put down to the aborted take-over bid. Two weeks ago, it was confirmed that Saudi Arabia government official Turki Alalshikh (Sheikh) was not taking over the Rams. After being sanctioned by the EFL and Independent Football Regulator, the deal was set to go ahead. The controlling stake is off the table, for now, at least.

Perhaps this news in the week before the opening fixture affected minds. While the Swans opened the league season with a win against a new bête noire in Ethan Galbraith, Derby County lost to an old bête noire in Nathan Jones. His on-form Charlton side came back from 1-0 down to triumph 2-1 in an even game. Last weekend, however, Derby were fortunate to get a point against our friends down the road.

Cardiff (below) took the lead twice, had almost two-thirds of the possession, and the higher xG. Understandably, this did not go down too well with the fans. After being outplayed by a newly promoted team in the first home game, Matos should target a fast start and look to get the home crowd anxious.

The last meeting between these sides was on Valentine's Day, in the middle of the run when Matos' team were strong at home and struggled away from home. In a display typical of this period, we played well and had chances, but faded after the second goal, and Derby closed out a 2-0 win.

This result was the 22nd game in a row where Derby had scored at least one goal. That run ended the very next game with a 2-0 away loss to Watford. This pattern continued until the end of the season, with wins followed by losses, followed by wins. After a draw versus West Brom in January, Derby did not draw another game for the rest of the season. The most painful loss during that run was the final game of the season. After taking an early lead through Sam Szmodics, Sheffield United came back to win 2-1, to end any hopes of sneaking into the final play-off position.

Szmodics missed the Cardiff game with a thigh injury, and according to the Derby Telegraph, he will also miss this weekend's game. Also out injured is important defender Matt Clarke, which was a "huge blow" according to manager John Eustace. At the other end of the pitch, star striker Patrick Agyemang, who scored in that Valentine's Day win against the Swans, is still out after injuring his Achilles in April. Likewise, the other scorer in that game, ex-Swan Rhian Brewster, had knee surgery in April, which ruled him out for the rest of the season. He has appeared as a replacement in the first two league games as he builds up his fitness.

More on this in our preview yesterday below.

Brewster will provide a threat from the bench, but the starting danger will come from Bobby Clark, as Vitor Matos knows well. Their paths would have crossed at Red Bull Salzburg, and the former Liverpool youngster is now a permanent player for the Rams. His £6m fee is already looking like good business, as the 21-year-old bagged a goal and an assist in an all-round excellent performance against the Bluebirds.

Derby County ended last season in 8th place. In the very early standings, the Swans find themselves in 8th place. Whether we can stay there depends on games like this, featuring teams who feel like they should beat us at home. It is hard to predict this one, but the Swans should absolutely target a win with Derby currently in a vulnerable position with key injuries.

I predict/hope for a 2-1 win.

It is interesting to note that the Swans squad cost is above that of Wrexham and Birmingham City this evening. The club have gathered a lot of permanent transfers and are supporting head coach, Vitor Matos magnificently. It’s a plan that has to come to fruition over the next two years, but nobody can say this isnt a fort to bring Premier League football back to its rightful place in Wales.

Tomorrow morning we will have our usual Saturday service for Jacks worldwide.

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Photographs : MT1IMGOSP0004XVSES & MT1IMGOSP000U4M0DK licensed from Reuters