"He will cause Millwall problems" - Prediction made about Derby County individual | OneFootball

Kenzo Goudmijn has struggled in the last couple of months, but under new guidance he could be a huge threat.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Derby County are looking for their first win of 2025 this weekend as they welcome Millwall to Pride Park Stadium in the Championship.

The fight for survival in the second tier is heating up by the week, and the Rams will be hoping that victory will take them out of the bottom three and out of danger for a few days at least.

John Eustace's first game in charge of the club did not go to plan at all, with the East Midlands outfit being rolled over by QPR at Loftus Road in a 4-0 defeat - the club's heaviest loss for nearly four years.

However, with a full week's worth of training and a raucous home support backing them, Derby are hoping that they can put their barren run to an end at the expense of Millwall. However, they will need some of their key stars to return to form to have a chance.

Millwall warned of one crucial Derby player

The Lions held Saturday's hosts at The Den in the reverse fixture back in October, with Jerry Yates' first goal for the club being cancelled out late on by a Mihailo Ivanovic equaliser.

The South London side have been somewhat of a bogey team for the Rams in recent years, and Eustace will be looking to pick up his new team's first win over Millwall since December 2020.

To do so, performances will have to be better from a number of players, and when asked by Football League World which player Alex Neil's side must be most wary about, FLW's Derby Fan Pundit, Shaun Woodward, chose someone who came off the bench against QPR.

"Looking at Millwall, they’re a big, solid side, they play three at the back, so I think the one player that they will be worrying about is Kenzo Goudmijn," he started.

"I think they'll cope with Lars-Jorgen Salvesen as he's big and strong and I think that'll suit their centre-halves. But if you've got a small technical player in the little pockets between their back three and their midfield four, I think if he's clever enough he can find those little spaces and it can sometimes drag a centre-half into positions they don't want to be.

"Or he could drag a centre-midfielder back into a position where they're not comfortable, almost into their back three."

Shaun concluded: "So, I think if he's clever, and we use him right, he could be a real key player for us at the weekend and I just hope that he's brought back in. I think he will cause Millwall quite a few problems if we play him right and he can find those little pockets."

Goudmijn needs to offer more soon

Goudmijn started the season excellently, and he looked to be an incredibly shrewd acquisition for just £600k. However, in the last few months, he has struggled for consistency and he must find the levels that he was showing in the opening weeks of the campaign.

To give the benefit of the doubt, Paul Warne's system did not suit the Dutch midfielder, and under Eustace he will be given more opportunity to take games by the scuff of the neck and make a difference in matches.

Goudmijn has the ability to become a very good Championship player, but he needs more confidence and that will only come with trust from his new manager.

If the 23-year-old can get back to his best, Derby have an extremely talented player on their hands and Millwall will be worried about what he could provide.