Derby County host Stoke City at Pride Park on 17 October 2026 in EFL Championship Gameweek 11. Derby sit 23rd with just six points from ten games after being thumped 4-1 at Queens Park Rangers on 14 October and John Eustace is reportedly among the managers closest to the sack. Stoke are eighth on 16 points and have scored in every league match this season, something the club has not managed for 25 years. Mark Robins, in charge since January 2025, got his side through a 2-1 win over Bolton Wanderers on 10 October while playing with ten men for most of it. Saturday is also the first time Eustace and Robins have met as opposing Championship managers. A Derby win would drag them off the bottom and buy Eustace some breathing room, whereas Stoke are looking to cut into the gap between eighth and the top six.
Derby's recent form reads L D D L L, with the midweek collapse at QPR exposing the defensive problems that have followed them all season and leaving them with the worst goal difference in the bottom half. Stoke's form reads L W W W D, a run that captures how gradually they have clicked under Robins, scoring in every league game this season while winning the close ones to sit eighth.
Derby are without Sondre Langas, ruled out with a groin injury and Patrick Agyemang remains sidelined by a long term Achilles rupture. Losing Langas from the back line is a serious problem given their defensive record and Agyemang's absence is nothing new but still limits what Eustace can do going forward. Stoke travel without Aaron Cresswell, Svante Ingelsson and Sam Gallagher, which means losing defensive cover and two attacking options simultaneously and Robins will have to lean on the squad depth he has built since the turn of the year.
Tactically, Derby have been pragmatic at Pride Park, using a compact midfield screen to absorb pressure with Sammie Szmodics as the primary outlet. He has scored several times despite the team's wider struggles and is clearly their best player and without Langas and Agyemang Eustace is unlikely to deviate from that shape. Stoke's setup may shift slightly with Cresswell absent, his replacement less likely to push high, which could reduce Stoke's width on the left flank. Ben Wilmot anchors the back line with over 200 appearances behind him, giving Robins something reliable to build from. The central question in transition is whether Derby can get Szmodics into one on one situations on the break, which is their most realistic route to goal.
The last four meetings between these sides have all been decided by a single goal or a late swing, with both teams taking wins and a draw across them. Derby giving away dead ball chances while also missing defensive cover from Langas makes set pieces a likely area of exposure in this one and Derby's midweek outing at QPR could tell in the second half if Stoke have the fresher legs to press higher.
Stoke to win 2-1. Derby's winless run and the defensive holes left by Langas and Agyemang leave them exposed against a side that has scored in every league game this season and whose recent wins suggest they convert the chances they create. Szmodics may well get on the scoresheet but the form run, the scoring record and the Derby absences all point the same way.
Ryan Baldi
Football Writer
Ryan Baldi is a professional football writer with years of experience and has been featured by respected outlets such as the BBC, The Guardian, Sky Sports, DAZN, FourFourTwo, ESPN, Yahoo Sport and Football365. He has also written several books including Arsène Who?.
