Derby County’s Ozoh Nearing Injury Return, Coach Warne Indicates

Derby County’s head coach, Paul Warne, has indicated that midfielder David Ozoh is “close” to returning to play. The 19-year-old, on loan from Crystal Palace, has been sidelined for the past two months due to injury, with his last appearance for the Rams being in mid-September following a hamstring injury. Ozoh had initially been expected to return last month, but a quad muscle problem caused a setback, extending his absence by an additional four weeks. During his press conference ahead of Saturday’s match against Preston, Warne shared with BBC Radio Derby’s Rams Daily podcast: “He keeps putting his face in front of mine at the buffet, so he’s obviously getting closer.” He elaborated on the behavior of recovering players, stating: “When they’re injured, the first few weeks, they don’t want to look at the manager and when they get close, they start doing star jumps in front of the salad bowls.” Warne added, regarding Ozoh specifically: “I’ve definitely noticed him more so that means he’s obviously close. I’ve been told that he’s going to train next week.” The coach also commented on the player’s match readiness: “It’s obviously going to take him a little bit of time to catch up. I think the Sheffield Wednesday game will probably come too quick, but the one after [Leeds United on 7 December] possibly not.” Warne also provided additional comments on other topics. Addressing the upcoming opponent, Preston, Warne remarked: “I know how methodical he [Paul Heckingbottom] is and how well the team are coached. I think Preston are similar to virtually every team in the bottom 12 – that you wouldn’t be surprised if they went and won three on the spin. I know how tough it’s going to be and how much they want to get a home win against us, but in the same way, we’re desperate to get back-to-back away wins. So we go into the game as we always do, trying to win it.” Regarding the advantages of the recent international break, he stated: “Some have got some sun, some have had a city break, which they need because the next eight weeks, it feels like you’re in every day. So it’s a nice psychological rest and we’ve had a reasonable week this week.”