Derby County replacement will have Luton Town motivation against Watford: View | OneFootball

Sonny Bradley is expected to come in to the team after Eiran Cashin's injury, facing up to his ex-rivals for the first time since leaving Luton.

Key Takeaways

Derby County travel to Vicarage Road in the Championship this weekend, as the Rams go toe-to-toe with Watford for the first time since 2021, but will be without two key players.

Eiran Cashin and Kane Wilson were both forced off inside the first 25 minutes in last Saturday's 1-0 win over Middlesbrough at Pride Park Stadium.

Wilson pulled up inside the Rams' own box with a hamstring issue, not long after Derby's young centre-back had been subject to a painful-looking head injury.

Cashin came to blows with his own teammate, Callum Elder, when trying to clear a ball away from Emmanuel Latte Lath. The 22-year-old slid in front of the striker to put the ball out for a corner, however, Elder, who was also trying to stop Latte Lath, came in and made contact with Cashin's head with his knee.

Despite trying his best to stay on the field, Paul Warne took off his number six in place of Sonny Bradley, who is now anticipated to start the next two fixtures due to concussion protocols, setting up an interesting clash with Luton Town's rivals, the club that he joined Derby from.

Sonny Bradley's Luton Town past will bring an edge

The 32-year-old made the jump to the Rams from Luton last summer, after helping the Hatters to Premier League promotion in his final year at the club.

Despite making just 19 appearances in 2022/23, his leadership off the pitch was influential in the Hatters' rise from the third tier all the way to the top flight in just four years - having brought Championship football back to Kenilworth Road in 2019.

While his record against Watford is not spectacular, he has been on the right side of a result against the Hornets once before, captaining his former side to victory in April 2021, and he can use that experience to help Derby on Saturday.

Bradley will expect a bit of banter as well as vitriol at Vicarage Road, but a fine performance that leads the Rams to all three points will be the perfect way to acknowledge his Luton days while wearing black and white.

The defender will want to win every game he plays in but he might have a little extra motivation against the Hornets.

Sonny Bradley was impeccable against Middlesbrough

Derby were already 1-0 up against Middlesbrough when Bradley was brought onto the pitch, and he had to quickly match the speed of the game with the visitors putting Warne's side under constant pressure.

Alongside Curtis Nelson, the 32-year-old centre-back kept a rampant Boro attack from scoring, limiting them to mostly pot-shots from distance, a situation that was well managed by goalkeeper Josh Vickers.

Bradley was steady but not inspiring in his first season at Pride Park, and grew into his role as the year progressed, however, he showed no symptoms of his poor form from August 2023 on Saturday.

He won every header, controlled Latte Lath superbly and was calm on the ball on the few occasions that he was required to be.

With the talented David Ozoh protecting the defence, there is no reason that Derby can not carry over the confidence from last weekend's result to Vicarage Road and shock yet another Championship stalwart in Watford.