Derby are enduring their toughest spell on the road this season, it’s now three defeats in their last three. However, this shouldn’t detract from the fact they’ve been one of the most effective visiting teams in the league. For a fairly sustained period Derby had the 2nd-best away record in the Championship. The visitors are still harbouring ambitions of making the play-offs, so there should be plenty of motivation to come out of the blocks quickly and grab an early goal. 

The visitors have been quick starters on the road, in their 18 away matches, they’ve been leading at half time in eight of them, a statistically significant 44.44%. With Derby Half-Time Result at 4.00 you’d like to think there’s some value here. Portsmouth can’t seem to convert promising performances into wins, it’s now just one point from their last four matches. Portsmouth were particularly slow out the blocks against Swansea last week at Fratton Park, losing 2-0 at half time.

There’s a general tendency for Portsmouth to rack up a high corner count when they lose matches at Fratton Park. Indeed, in their eight defeats on home soil, they’ve picked up an average of 7.11 corners; in five of those matches they accumulated 9+ corners. 

John Eustace teams are generally quite pragmatic, happy to soak up pressure and be without the ball for long periods. This could be a particular feature if Derby are leading by the break. In addition to this, Derby's lead in the game should be conducive to Portsmouth's pressure and attacking intent. For example, in away game victories against West Brom, Sheffield United, and Blackburn, Derby conceded 11, 9, and 13 corners. 

Portsmouth are perfectly capable of having sustained spells of pressure, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if they’re very dominant in and out of possession, especially given their need to win the game; whether that will be enough to pick up the three points is another question altogether.