Northampton vs Derby prediction, betting tips and odds

Northampton Town take on Derby County in League One on Saturday afternoon as the visitors are aiming to hold on to their promotion spot.

Find the latest match odds for Northampton vs Derby. Odds are subject to change.

• Northampton - 7/2
• Draw - 13/5
• Derby - 4/6

• Over 3.5 goals, Derby to win - 4/1 with Sky Bet
• Gayle and Mendez-Laing to score - 7/2 with Sky Bet

Derby on a great run of wins in their bid to keep second spot and potentially aim for first if Portsmouth have a dip in form, which seems unlikely at this point as they sit five points ahead of County going into this weekend.

Derby have a four point cushion on Bolton and seven points ahead of Peterborough United, but they will still have to see out the seven remaining games in the league to confirm Championship football next season.

Northampton are on a poor run of form in comparison which is great news for the visitors.

They've failed to win in each of their last five games in the league, including a 5-1 loss to Peterborough and losses to Blackpool and Wycombe.

Town do have a good spell of fixtures in the run-in after this game though. However, they're neither fighting for relegation or a play-off spot which gives their relegation opposition a chance too as they face Reading, Port Vale and Carlisle in their final few games.

Derby have scored 69 so far this season, only bettered by three teams and they've kept a good defensive record too.

Northampton see a lot of goals on average in the league, conceding 60 and scoring 50 in their 39 games played.

Both teams are capable of scoring quite a bit but Derby may take advantage of Northampton's recent poor form and add to their poor tally of 60 goals conceded which is the fourth highest GA in the league.

With the two teams scoring plenty and the favourites of the clash coming up against one of the biggest conceders in the league it's clear there's a big chance for goals.

To add worries to Northampton fans, Derby will be going all guns blazing in their attack as they have everything to play for in the run-in.

Derby are favoured to win and they have done just that on numerous occasions this season which has seen them rocket up to 2nd in the table and they've been consistent recently which is key.

These two sides have rarely faced each other in recent years, in fact this is just the fourth meeting this millennium.

Prior to this season in the league, they'd only met in the FA Cup in 2020 which was their first encounter for 53 years.

Derby have won on both occasions - winning the replay 4-2 and the reverse fixture in the league back in October 4-0.

Derby were 3-0 up before half time in that game at Pride Park with Max Bird netting a quick brace either side of a Conor Washington goal.

Nathaniel Mendez-Laing has been crucial for Derby this year and he added the fourth goal shortly after the second half resumed.

The attacker has smashed his goal involvements tally last year, with eight goals and an astonishing 15 assists.

While Bird netted a brace, he's still only scored three goals since then in all competitions and it's more than likely Mendez-Laing can continue his form.

Derby are missing James Collins who can always add to their goals, but he's out for a long stint due to torn knee ligaments and has been out for the last seven games.

The 33-year-old has 13 goals in League One and five in the EFL Trophy - also smashing last year's tally of goals, in ten less games.

Derby have had to contend with quite a few injuries to their forwards this year, but they're still finding goals.

And they even enlisted Dwight Gayle to help their promotion chances - of which he's already netted three in six games, proving he's able to bounce back from a poor spell with Stoke City.

He should be prominent again alongside Mendez-Laing where they can both realistically be on the score sheet.

• Location: Sixfields Stadium, Northampton, England.
• Date and time: Saturday 23rd March 2024, 3pm.
• How to watch: iFollow available for international viewers.

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