As we approach the halfway stage of the season, Burton find themselves in 23rd place, five points away from safety in the League One standings, owing to a very poor start.
The Brewers were winless in their first eight league matches, leading to previous manager Jimmy Floyd Hasselbainkresigning at the start of September, leaving the club bottom of the table.
After his departure, the Burton board moved swiftly to appoint Dino Maamria to the vacant post, and the new boss has overseen a slight improvement in form since taking over, securing progression to the FA Cup third round and the EFL Trophy last 16.
While the Tunisian has definitely made the Brewers harder to beat, now undefeated in their last six games in all competitions, the three games in the league during this time have all ended in draws, most recently in an away trip to MK Dons.
Burton looked to be heading towards an important three points against another side struggling in League One, with Victor Adeboyejo opening the scoring just before the 30-minute mark, but Bradley Johnson struck late to ensure the spoils were once again shared.
Having been relegated to the third tier for the first time since 1986 last season, Derby have made a decent, if not spectacular, start to life in their new division.
Liam Rosenior was interim boss at Pride Park until late September, after Wayne Rooney opted to leave the club in the summer, before Paul Warne was brought in from Rotherham United, and the manager is starting to get to grips with the new role.
After a shaky start, winning just two of his opening seven games, Warne is now on a run of just one loss in his last 10 games as manager, with this coming in an EFL Cup game against Liverpool, which his side only lost on penalties.
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Similarly to Burton, however, Derby have made a habit of drawing too many games, particularly in League One, having drawn three of their last four matches in the competition.
Recent fixtures have been tough tests, with the Rams travelling to eighth-placed Portsmouth before taking on third-placed Sheffield Wednesday at home, so tying both may not be deemed bad results, but it will be frustrating that both games have finished 0-0.
As such, Warne’s side will need to find their shooting boots ahead of Saturday, although they will be hoping to continue their stellar defensive record, with 16 goals conceded being the joint-lowest figure in the league.
