The 9 players set to miss Derby County vs Ipswich Town ft ​​​​​​​Sammie Szmodics | OneFootball

FLW takes a look at those who will miss out in on Ipswich Town's visit to Pride Park to face Derby County on Saturday.

Derby County face Ipswich Town on Saturday, in one of the EFL Championship's early kick-offs this weekend.

The Rams are looking for their first home victory since New Year's Day, but they are four-games unbeaten and their 5-0 win over Bristol City at Ashton Gate last weekend will inspire plenty of confidence in a side that is pushing for a play-off place.

Meanwhile, Ipswich Town are looking for just their fifth away victory of the season, as they visit a ground that they've had plenty of success at in the past. The Tractor Boys have lost just one of their last 12 games at Pride Park, but they face a tough challenge in the form of John Eustace's side.

Nevertheless, like any match in the Championship, there are plenty of stories to be written, but for nine players, they will be missing out as Derby host Ipswich for the first time since 2023.

The Rams' first-choice goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom will miss out once again this weekend, as he recovers from illness, following confirmation from John Eustace.

With Josh Vickers slowly returning from injury, there is a question to be asked about who will start with the gloves for the hosts, especially after Richard O'Donnell's impressive performances against Bristol City and Charlton Athletic.

8 ? ? Sondre Langas

Sondre Langas was another notable absentee for Derby from their dismantling of the Robins last week, with the Norwegian centre-back struggling with a hamstring problem.

While there has been talk of the £4m man being out for the next two months, Eustace has made it clear to BBC Radio Derby that he will be coming back into the squad in the next three to four weeks.

7 ? ? Max Johnston

We're yet to see the best that Max Johnston has to offer the Rams after he suffered a calf injury against QPR back in October, and the right-back is finally closing in on his return to the squad.

However, he was dealt a setback in his recovery at the end of January, adding another couple of weeks to his stint out of the team.

6 ? ? Carlton Morris

It's been four months since we last saw Carlton Morris in a Derby shirt, and those first 16 games as a Ram went just as well as he could have hoped for as he netted 10 goals before suffering a Lisfranc (mid-foot) injury against Watford.

The striker has returned to training, but it will be another few weeks until Eustace is ready to risk him in a Championship fixture.

Signed on deadline day from Ipswich, Sammie Szmodics will have to wait until next weekend for his Rams debut as he is currently on loan from the Tractor Boys.

He is unavailable to play against his parent club, but will be raring to go at Pride Park versus Swansea City on Valentine's Day.

4 ? ? Ashley Young

Ashley Young has been a bit-part player for Kieran McKenna's side this season, but he is currently struggling with a hip injury.

The former Manchester United man has been to see a specialist, and could be out for a significant period of time, having only made 13 appearances in the Championship this season.

3 ? ? Jaden Philogene

Jaden Philogene has been out of action since mid-January, and in his press conference ahead of Ipswich's clash with Derby, McKenna confirmed that he will not be involved against the Rams at Pride Park.

He has been back in training, but faced a slight setback in his recovery. However, his head coach is hoping that he can be back for the Tractor Boys' clash with Wrexham.

2 ? ? Marcelino Nunez

Similar to Philogene, there was perhaps a hope that Marcelino Nunez could have returned to the squad at Pride Park, but the former Norwich City man will also be more likely to return against Wrexham.

The 25-year-old suffered a blow to his ankle recently, but is slowly starting to regain his fitness as his side close in on the top two once again.

A long-term absentee, left-back Conor Townsend has not featured for Ipswich at all this season after he injured his ACL during a pre-season win over French side Auxerre.

The 32-year-old is not guaranteed to return this campaign, but will be hoping that he can play a part in the Suffolk outfit's promotion push in the final weeks of 2025/26 if he does return to full fitness.