'Derby were never going to make survival easy'

I think most fans would agree that if Derby are going to stay up, we are never going to do it the easy way. The easy way just isn't the 'Derby way'.

Having a huge chance against Luton Town on Friday to put a bit of daylight between us and the bottom three felt so precious. But the 1-0 defeat unfortunately feels like a big opportunity squandered in the fight for survival.

Going into the game it felt like more of a "want to win, but must not lose" for us, and I'd say more of a "want to win and need to win" for Luton.

I think that showed through the performances of both sides throughout the afternoon too. Derby were quite sloppy in possession in comparison to how they have been in recent weeks, and looked a yard off it at times.

Luton on the other hand, although not posing too much of an attacking threat, defended like their lives depended on it, throwing their bodies on the line on more than one occasion to ensure their crucial lead stayed intact, they just seemed like they wanted it that little bit more.

Perhaps the biggest question for John Eustace to answer is why we have reverted back to playing with wingers in the last couple of games, when things were previously working really well for us with an extra body in midfield and two more central attackers.

The general consensus among fans on Friday was that the game was lost in midfield and cried out for a player like Liam Thompson.

We got overrun in the first half, and although every player gave 110% to try and get us back into it in the second, there were still gaps in the middle of the park that caused us to lose out on possession multiple times from not being able to win first and second balls.

Thompson has been exceptional in Derby's midfield when called upon this season, providing a balance to the midfield which has brought the best out of our attack and defence.

Not to mention, Tommo started in every game when the Rams went on their winning run from the start of March to the beginning of April. In fact, the Rams only lost one game in the last six matches that the youngster made a start in, so you can understand why there's a little bit of confusion to see him lose his place in the starting line up to the likes of Nathaniel Mendez-Laing and Kayden Jackson, who many would agree have underperformed this season.

Potentially the absence of Callum Elder has a part to play too.

We definitely miss the Aussie's positivity down the left hand side, as well as his solidity defensively, despite the stellar job that Craig Forsyth has done since stepping into his place.

Perhaps losing Elder has meant we've had to try and find a little more attacking prowess through the use of wingers, however I actually believe we're worse off for it, and would like to see Eustace revert back to our more successful 3-5-2 system when we travel to West Brom on bank holiday Monday.

Defeat to the Hatters has left us on level points with them, and only out of the bottom three on goal difference. It now feels crucial that Derby bounce back against the Baggies and get something from the game, with no doubt even more twists and turns to come before the Easter period comes to an end.

You can often catch Amelia Warren as a guest on BBC Radio Derby.