However, their 22nd-placed opponents sit just five points below them in the standings with two games in hand, keeping the pressure on Wayne Rooney's side ahead of the fixture at the New York Stadium.

Match preview

Derby County manager Wayne Rooney pictured on January 23, 2021 © Reuters

When Rooney was appointed as the interim boss of Derby, supporters would naturally have had doubts over whether the England legend was the right man to lead a survival fight at one of the biggest clubs outside of the Premier League.

However, the change in the dugout currently looks inspired, with the Rams now sitting five points clear of the relegation zone on the back of three successive 1-0 wins.

The run of results since Rooney was handed the reins is barely believable, with 22 points being collected from 13 matches, a period which has also included eight clean sheets.

Rooney is having to watch some of the club's talented youngsters leave for pastures new in order to boost Derby's financial position, but it will feel like a small price to pay if the East Midlands outfit can remain in the second tier.

Four of Derby's next five matches are scheduled to be played away from Pride Park, something Rotherham will hope can derail the charge of one of their nearest rivals.

The Millers have recently boosted their own bid to avoid the drop with seven points from four games, although Paul Warne has a job on his hands to lift his players after the defeat to Swansea City.

Although Rotherham were underdogs to get the better of the promotion contenders, it was the second game in succession that three goals have been conceded at the New York Stadium.

Warne will point to last week's 3-0 victory over Middlesbrough as proof that they have the ability to upset the better teams, while they were also the last team to score a goal against Derby.

That came in the 86th minute of the reverse fixture on January 16, a result which seemingly acted as the catalyst for Rooney's side to step up a level over their last three outings.

Rotherham United Championship form: LLWDWL
Rotherham United form (all competitions): LLWDWL

Derby County Championship form: WLLWWW
Derby County form (all competitions): LLLWWW

Team News

Rotherham United manager Paul Warne pictured on January 16, 2021 © Reuters

Warne is likely to make a number of changes to his Rotherham side, including handing a start to recent arrival Ryan Giles.

Freddie Ladapo will also expect to be recalled after scoring as a substitute against Swansea, potentially coming in as a replacement for Michael Smith.

Derby will be without Krystian Bielik, who sustained what appeared to be a significant knee injury against Bristol City.

Martyn Waghorn is expected to come back into the starting lineup in what is likely to be the only change to the side.

Rotherham United possible starting lineup:
Blackman; Ihiekwe, Wood, A.MacDonald; Olosunde, Lindsay, S.MacDonald, Wiles, Giles; Crooks, Ladapo

Derby County possible starting lineup:
Marshall; Byrne, Wisdom, Clarke, Buchanan; Bird, Shinnie; Waghorn, Knight, Jozwiak; Kazim-Richards

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We say: Rotherham United 0-1 Derby County

There will come a time when Derby's run of 1-0 victories will be halted, potentially on Tuesday night against opponents who score goals at home. However, we cannot back against anything other than a narrow triumph for the visitors, who will move out of trouble with another three points.

Top betting tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting over 1.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.

Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Derby County win with a probability of 37.36%. A win for Rotherham United had a probability of 34.29% and a draw had a probability of 28.3%.

The most likely scoreline for a Derby County win was 0-1 with a probability of 11.83%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (7.83%) and 0-2 (6.99%). The likeliest Rotherham United win was 1-0 (11.21%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.24%). The actual scoreline of 3-0 was predicted with a 2.3% likelihood.