Paul Warne: Derby County boss bemoans side's unpredictability after FA Cup exit
- Published
Paul Warne's Derby County reached the fourth round of the FA Cup last season
Boss Paul Warne said he does not know what he will get from his Derby County side from game to game.
The Rams were knocked out of the FA Cup by fourth-tier side Crewe Alexandra on Tuesday night after being beaten 3-1 at home in the first-round replay.
That defeat came just three days after Derby beat top-six League One side Barnsley 3-0..
Asked about Derby's unpredictability, Warne said: "It's a fair comment and same for me."
Warne made just two changes from the side that cruised to victory against Barnsley on Saturday to move up to seventh and equal on points with the Tykes in the play-off spots.
Before that win, Derby had put four past Wolverhampton Wanderers' Under-21 side in the EFL Trophy and Northampton in the league at home. The come-from-behind draw with Crewe in the initial FA Cup first-round tie was sandwiched between those comprehensive wins.
"I picked virtually the same side from the performance on Saturday," Warne lamented when speaking to BBC Radio Derby.
"I've said it many times, when we win on Saturday I don't come away going 'wow, we have got everything sorted, we are the best team in the league'. I don't think that.
"Everyone plays to be the best they can. Maybe a couple of the senior players could have got hold of the game but Crewe made it difficult for us and we didn't have enough individuals at their best.
"If you interviewed all of my players, none of them would say they consciously didn't try or anything like that. They just weren't good enough to win the game."
The first-round FA Cup exit - which is the earliest Derby have gone out of the competition since the 1984-85 season - has prompted Warne to call his players back in for training on Thursday.
Victory, he said, would have earned players more time off during the international break.
"We will address all the things I spoke to them about in the dressing room. I will show them on video what I see and go out and train," Warne said.
"Then we will have three days away from my voice and come back fresh on Monday.
"It's not a punishment culture, it isn't like we lost a game and the gaffer is getting us in at six o'clock to run up and down hills.
"It was a reward thing - if they won three games at home, I feel like they deserve it but unfortunately we are short."