One usual star for Derby County has been criticised for his ‘poor performance’ against Lincoln City.
Derby County continued what has appeared to be a tough run of form following the turn of the new year yesterday.
The Rams were held to a 0-0 stalemate at Sincil Bank, taking it to two defeats and one draw in their last five games in all competitions.
Paul Warne‘s side had underwhelmed against Burton Albion last time out, but had managed to scrape by thanks to a late winner by Conor Hourihane.
However, it wasn’t to be this time round, with their domination in possession leading to nothing but a significant amount of shots off target.
Derby had the chance to move up into League One‘s automatic promotion spots but have now been left trailing, while Lincoln City claimed only their second point in their previous six outings.
Goals hadn’t been much of an issue this term, with Derby netting the second-most goals in the third tier so far. James Collins had bagged 12 league goals in 27 games as their key man, but he failed to replicate previous performances against The Imps.
After handing him a mere 5 rating, Derbyshire Live journalist Leigh Curtis said: “Created a chance for himself as a result of his selfless running. Smashed over the bar in the second half. Couldn’t fault his effort but Derby’s work in the final third was poor.”
How did James Collins do vs Lincoln?
James Collins was far from his usual best in the draw to Lincoln City.
The striker made only 29 touches despite playing the full 90 minutes – almost half as many as goalkeeper Josh Vickers. He managed only one shot on target and a further three off target, while he lost possession eight times.
Collins won none of his six ground duels, two of his eight headers and none of his three dribbles attempted.
It was a rare disappointing display from the 33-year-old, who was hailed as ‘so important’ to Derby County only this week.
It showed how much they do rely on him in games like this, as they really struggled to get things going without his usual spark up top.
Thankfully, it is likely just a one-off poor game for Collins, who will be eager to redeem himself against Reading in two days time.
The Rams will still have the opportunity to overtake Peterborough United on Tuesday, with Posh not returning to league action until they visit Sincil Bank next weekend.