Derby County will travel to Championship and East Midland rivals Nottingham Forest for tonight’s Carabao Cup clash at the City Ground.
Phillip Cocu might have led PSV Eindhoven to triumphs over Ajax and Feyenoord before bellowing instructions in the fiery heat of Istanbul, but the importance of Derby County’s Carabao Cup second round clash against Nottingham Forest will not be lost on the Dutchman.
For the first time, Cocu will sample one of the most historic battles in English football with Nottingham Forest set to ‘welcome’ the Rams to the City Ground on Tuesday night.
The three-time Eredivisie winning coach has kept his cards close to his chest ahead of a game that has breathed life into a cup competition so often overlooked by Championship clubs. But there is one player in Sabri Lamouchi’s squad that Cocu certainly has a lot of admiration for, even if he will be reluctant to admit it.
According to Fotomac, Cocu tried to sign Yohan Benalouane during his short-lived and ultimately doomed spell at Fenerbahce 12 months ago, shortly before the experienced centre-back joined Forest instead.
Strong, commanding and an affable presence off the pitch, Benalouane joined the two-time European champions from Leicester City in January and even scored a winner against Derby in the spring.
Unfortunately for the 32-year-old, he has been robbed of the chance to follow up those heroics tonight. An injury means Benalouane has been ruled out and won’t feature against the manager who tried to sign him last summer.
But, once he returns to the pitch, Benalouane’s leadership skills and big-game nous could make him a major player in the battle for promotion.
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