- Team form: The Rams are winless in their last 5 (D3, L2), while the Trotters are in mixed form after 2 wins, 1 draw and 2 defeats from their last 5 matches.
- Home form: Derby County have won just 0 of their 6 Championship 2026/2027 home games so far (D2, L4), conceding an average of 1.67 goals.
- Away form: Bolton Wanderers have conceded 11 goals on their travels, but they've also won 2 of their 6 away Championship 2026/2027 games (D2, L2).
Bolton can be hard to catch at home and away
Bolton Wanderers arrive to Pride Park in better form than their hosts and the visitors could well hold Derby County to a draw on Friday in a tight 0-0 or low-scoring 1-0 game. Steven Schumacher's side have looked sharper on the road, beating Wolves 3-1 away at Molineux, before drawing 0-0 away at Southampton. They will feel they can get something here given the Rams are 23rd in the Championship 2026/2027 table with just 7 points from 12 games.
The Trotters sit 18th with 14 points from the same amount of matches, so the draw odds of 3.35 look a little high, even though Derby are a narrow odds-on 2.22 favorites against the 3.07 on offer about Bolton.
Schumacher’s style fits this fixture
We fancy the hosts to nick this, but Bolton are tough to beat on the road and should be more up for this one than their own fans. The away side are more likely to get the result due to their away form, but there are other reasons why we're going with an away double chance.
Tactical matchup
Bolton's style should fit this fixture nicely as Schumacher has taken to a possession-based system that gets bodies forward and gets the ball wide. Derby are more compact and rigid, as John Eustace has implemented a 4-2-3-1 that is much more solid than not, with Bobby Clark their biggest spark in the front three and top scorer in the Championship 2026/2027 with 2 goals in 8 games.
Players to watch
- Gaizka Larrazabal has been the chief supply-line, delivering 3 assists in Bolton's last 5 as the wide playmaker creates havoc from the flanks.
- Bolton have the sharper finisher in this clash in Sam Dalby (3 goals, 8 appearances) and it would take a good one to unlock Derby's system, which has conceded an average of 1.67 per game at Pride Park.
The draw looks likely, but Derby can edge it
Derby's home form in the Championship 2026/2027 is poor to put it mildly with just 2 draws and 4 defeats from 6 at Pride Park, while their home goals scored (0.67) and conceded (1.67) figures are equally as blunt.
A Derby win or under 2.5 goals should also do well in this game, which looks to be a close matchup between two clubs that have had their troubles in the second-tier. The hosts have had the better of Bolton in recent years, but the visitors can at least make this a close encounter.
