Conor Hourihane has revealed which of Derby County’s promotion rivals made them feel the most uncomfortable this season.
Derby are locked in a battle to win promotion out of League One this term and Conor Hourihane has played a pivotal role.
Once a box-to-box midfielder back in his days at Aston Villa, Hourihane now plays in a more deep-lying role.
The 33-year-old dictates play from deep with his superb passing range and has also shown his eye for the spectacular, weighing in with four goals, including the thunderbolt to beat Burton Albion 3-2 in January.
Despite his age, the Republic of Ireland star is still hugely important to Paul Warne, who has used him across 30 matches in the third tier this season.
During that time, Hourihane has played against several of Derby’s promotion rivals.
He’s had a real taste of which teams are the strongest in the division, revealing that their 3-2 defeat against Peterborough United in January is the toughest match they’ve faced this season.
Conor Hourihane names Peterborough United as the toughest League One opponent
Speaking as a guest on the Not The Top 20 Podcast, Hourihane gave the reasoning behind why Peterborough are the toughest team he’s faced.
He said: “It’s uncomfortable for sure, you know pace, power. To be honest with you, when Peterborough came to our place, it’s probably the first time in a while in this league where I was like this is like a Championship game.
“And Peterborough, when we played them a month ago, was like a Championship game, it’s quicker, it’s faster, it’s more end to end, there’s more quality. You know they have players who many could play in the Championship. But they are young, energetic and can handle the ball.”
Derby were actually 2-1 ahead in their match against Peterborough at Pride Park, but a late flurry of goals from Kwame Poku and a 94th minute winner from Ricky-Jade Jones handed them defeat.
Are Peterborough the toughest League One side?
The Posh have scored the most goals in the division this term with 59 in 32 matches.
So, in terms of their attack, it could be argued that they are the most dangerous side to come up against. The likes of Poku, Jones and Jonson Clarke-Harris are so difficult to play against.
At the other end of the pitch, though, Darren Ferguson’s side have the second worst defence in the top six with 39 goals conceded this term, one better than Oxford United’s total of 40.
Their fluidity in transition and in the final third is often caught out and in recent matches, they’ve shipped five goals against Wycombe Wanderers and three against Wigan Athletic.
Hourihane is right about their attack, but the fact they leave themselves exposed defensively means they aren’t the toughest side in the league.