John Eustace learnt from Stoke City mentor he ‘respects a great deal’, he could now relegate the Potters with Derby County

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Derby County host Stoke City this Saturday in what could be a pivotal game for a number of teams in the Championship relegation battle.

Both Derby and Stoke can still be relegated, but only one is able to go down. The winner will survive, the loser could still survive, while a draw would definitely be enough for the Potters and could be enough for the Rams.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
16	PortsmouthPortsmouth	45	14	11	20	57	70	-13	53
17	Oxford UnitedOxford United	45	13	13	19	46	62	-16	52
18	Stoke CityStoke City	45	12	14	19	45	62	-17	50
19	DerbyDerby	45	13	10	22	48	56	-8	49
20	PrestonPreston	45	10	19	16	46	57	-11	49
21	LutonLuton	45	13	10	22	42	64	-22	49
22	Hull CityHull City	45	12	12	21	43	53	-10	48

John Eustace and Mark Robins have both seen an upturn in results and performances since their appointments, but the former has particularly transformed his side. That’s because Robins’ team lost twice in a week to Leeds United and Sheffield United to drag them back into the mix.

The recent Championship weekend was full of drama, joy, and agony in equal measure. There are bound to be more twists and turns on that front on final day, but Derby will hope that Eustace can work more magic in a home game to drag themselves over the line.

• READ MORE: Mark Robins bemoans ‘difference in quality’ after Stoke City 0-2 Sheffield United

John Eustace could lean on Tony Pulis experiences for Derby County to beat Stoke City

After promotion last year, the main aim of Derby was to ensure survival in their first season back at the level. In doing so, Eustace could relegate a club he once played for, having joined Stoke from Coventry City as a midfielder in the summer of 2003.

He spent plenty of time there before eventually moving onto Watford and then Derby to finish his playing career. Not only that, but he spent the majority of his Stoke stint under arguably their most iconic manager in recent memory in Tony Pulis.

Earlier this season, back in November, Eustace revealed how much he had learned from his old boss, singing his praises via Stoke on Trent Live in the process. He said: “I had five very happy years there.

“Unfortunately, I was injured for two-and-a-half [to] three years of that. The people there, the fanbase are great, the staff are fantastic. I had a very good manager in Tony Pulis there; it’s a really good club.

“I have taken bits from each manager throughout my career. You look at reasons why when you’re happy at a club and that can be from management, the environments that they set — I try to take a bit from everyone.

“Tony is a friend of mine now who I speak to a lot. Someone I respect a great deal.”

Learning from his great mentor and friend could be one of the ways he beats Stoke this weekend, thus opening the door to relegation if results go against them in the Hull City, Luton Town, and Preston North End fixtures.

• READ MORE: Derby County fans are all saying the same thing about Nat Phillips as Liverpool loanee all but secures survival vs Hull

Opta’s Championship relegation prediction

It’s easily possible to envisage a situation where Stoke and Derby survive just by drawing the game, although neither are likely to be playing for that in the early stages.

Should results be going their way, then a draw is likely to suit both sides. There could be a situation late on when neither is going for it for fear of losing the match and losing their Championship status.

Opta Analyst‘s prediction suggests both are in a strong position to be playing Championship football in 2025/26 again. It is very unlikely that everything goes against teams sat in 18th and 19th with decent goal difference to lean on as well.