Middlesbrough one point off sixth-placed Derby after draw; Bristol City two points behind; Watch Derby vs West Brom live on Sky Sports Football on Sunday
Thursday 2 May 2019 08:52, UK
The race for the final Sky Bet Championship play-off place will go to the final day as Derby were held to a 1-1 draw by Swansea at the Liberty Stadium.
Derby now go into the last day of their Championship campaign a single point clear of Middlesbrough in sixth place, but they could have virtually guaranteed a play-off spot if they registered three points at the Liberty Stadium.
Captain Richard Keogh headed the visitors in front in the 21st minute in a first half which Derby dominated, but Swansea responded brightly after the break with Wayne Routledge tapping in a rebound in the 66th minute.
Derby's final game against West Brom is live on Sky Sports Football, which kicks off at 12.30pm on Sunday.
Derby were bright in the opening stages as they pressed the Swansea backline high up the pitch. Their first chance arrived in the 14th minute through Bradley Johnson, but his header at the back post was acrobatically saved by Kristoffer Nordfeldt.
Seven minutes later and Derby broke the deadlock through their captain Keogh. The 32-year-old rose highest at the back post from a corner and saw his looping header hit the net after cracking off the woodwork.
Derby almost extended their lead via an own goal before the break as Mason Mount's whipped ball was narrowly cleared beyond the post by Cameron Carter-Vickers, shortly before Nordfeldt was called into action again to tip over a classy chip from Harry Wilson using the outside of his boot.
Swansea sprung into life in the second half and dominated the rest of the game. The Welsh club nearly equalised four minutes in through substitute Declan John, but his low shot from a one-on-one was blocked by the trailing legs of Kelle Roos.
The hosts made their pressure count with an equaliser shortly after the hour-mark. Routledge tapped in from point-blank range after McBurnie's header on goal from a corner was tipped onto the post by Roos.
Momentum was with Swansea and they almost found the winner in the 88th minute when Routledge played a threatening ball across the goalmouth, but McBurnie could not stretch far enough to turn the ball home at the far post.
He was quiet in the first half, but the experienced forward produced an excellent display after the break to get his side back into the game and almost created a winning goal in the final stages of the match.
Graham Potter: "It wasn't from a lack of trying on our part," he told the club's official website. "Sometimes you have to hold your hands up and say the opposition are better.
"Second half I thought we responded well. I was pleased with Jay [Fulton] and Declan [John]'s introduction and I thought we were the better team in the second half. So, in the end, maybe a draw was a fair result."
Frank Lampard: "It's in our hands. If you offered me that seven or eight months ago I'd have taken it.
"The play-offs are where we want to be and it will be an achievement if we get that sixth spot. It's time for us to stay focused and calm behind the scenes. The fans will be excited, but we've got to know what the job is."
Swansea travel to Blackburn on the final day of the Sky Bet Championship season for a 12.30pm kick-off on Sunday. Derby, meanwhile, host West Brom at the same time, live on Sky Sports Football.
