Derby County head coach Gary Rowett has told the Derby Telegraph that he is not feeling under pressure going into today’s match with Nottingham Forest.

The biggest game on Derby County’s calendar is always the East Midlands derby with Nottingham Forest and this year is no different. However the Rams are not going into the game with the sort of form they want. They have gone five games without a win which has seen them drop down the Sky Bet Championship table, leaving them in 15th position and Forest higher than them in the division.

But even with this recent run of poor form, Rowett is not feeling under pressure as he goes into one of the biggest games of the season. He is treating every game that Derby plays the same, whether it be a random match in the Carabao Cup or the massive East Midlands derby which is set to be a sell-out.

He said: “Because it’s a local derby, because both teams are sitting in a position they don’t really want to be sat in, everyone kind of ramps up that pressure externally,”

“But I’ve been a manager for six years now and every game is pressure. Every game you turn up to, there’s a part of you that thinks, ‘We really need to win this one’ – for whatever reason, whether that’s to stay up in a higher position, to improve a lower position, whether it’s after a win or a defeat.”

“Every game is the same – for me, there’s no extra motivation to win this game, there’s no extra pressure on this game. It’s the next game we have to win and because it’s a local derby, there becomes an added significance in trying to do that.”

“But ultimately, I’m not sat here thinking, ‘Oh God, it’s Forest on Sunday, there feels so much more pressure on the game’.”

“We’ve had play-off finals, play-off semi-finals, all sorts of things. As a player, I’ve played in games where we’ve need to win to get promotion, so I’ve had all ends of the spectrum.”

“So ultimately, it’s a game we’re excited about, it’s a game we want to try to embrace. Are we nervous about it? No, not really.”