John Eustace issues passionate Derby County message after Coventry City win | OneFootball

The Rams ran out 2-0 winners on Tuesday evening, taking them to within one point off safety.

John Eustace has admitted that his Derby County side are fighting for their lives after an incredible 2-0 win over play-off-battling Coventry City on Tuesday evening at Pride Park Stadium.

The Rams have won back-to-back games for the first time since September after backing up their 2-1 victory over Blackburn Rovers on Saturday with an incredible three points against the Sky Blues thanks to goals from Matt Clarke and Marcus Harness.

It's the second time that the East Midlands outfit have prevailed over their West Midlands counterparts this season, and it has seen them close the gap to Cardiff City and Stoke City to just one point, with the latter facing Rovers this evening at Ewood Park.

Derby make the long journey to fellow strugglers Plymouth Argyle this weekend, but with confidence levels high, there are strong hopes that the team can go into the final international break of the campaign outside of the bottom three.

Eustace commends Derby team after superb win over Coventry

Frank Lampard's side went into Tuesday's clash off the back of nine wins in 10 matches, and with their grip on fifth spot starting to tighten, many anticipated Coventry to take the points back with them to the CBS Arena.

However, they were rocked by an excellent Clarke header 23 minutes in. Harness, who had set up the centre-back for his goal, then doubled the Rams' lead just after the break to put his team into a commanding position.

The home side held out with Jacob Widell Zetterstrom denying Bobby Thomas spectacularly in the final moments to stop the Sky Blues from finding a way back into the game, with Derby's defence holding strong throughout the 90 minutes.

Eustace heaped praise on his team following the final whistle, but made no secret of the position that they remain in.

He said: "Very proud of the effort of the group. The heart and desire they showed tonight after a tough game on Saturday to do it again tonight was outstanding.

"We’re fighting for our lives. We want to stay in the league, we’re fighters not victims, that’s the mentality we are trying to push to these players."

Eustace continued: "Tonight we showed the never-say-die attitude. When we went ahead we looked comfortable and full credit to the players.

"It’s important we have that siege mentality where we are being written off and people think we are down. It’s going to be a difficult ask to keep us up but we will fight until the end."

The opportunity to jump back out of the drop zone is in reach for Derby, but the Rams' head coach has insisted that nothing is being taken for granted: "They’re happy but focused. We understand there are nine games to go and we have to keep being competitive.

"Everyone understands the seriousness of the situation we are in. It’s very important to understand there will be difficult moments coming up as well.

"We don’t want to get too high with the highs and too low with the lows. Stay very focused and take each game as it comes."

The feel good factor is back at Pride Park

2025 has been tough for the Rams, and after an incredibly difficult start to the year, this last week has been sensational and the seven-point gap between themselves and 21st has been cut to just one in the space of two games.

However, the job is by no means done yet and Saturday presents Derby with an incredible chance to go into the international break full of confidence.

Pride Park finally looks to be the fortress that it has been for a number of years, and Eustace has re-established the connection with the fans, something that had been lost under the previous regime.

Derby know that a defeat to Plymouth at Home Park will not dictate their survival chances, but a victory would be the perfect end to an incredible week.