In an effort to put Derby County behind the wheels in the battle for automatic promotion, Peterborough United boss Darren Ferguson has stated that Paul Warne’s team must defeat Cambridge United this coming weekend.

Ferguson hasn’t given up on the hunt for second, even though Posh have everything to do—possibly taking a page from his father Sir Alex’s psychological playbook. His remarks stand in sharp contrast to those of Ian Evatt of Bolton, who, with two games remaining and trailing Derby by three points, conceded that they would make the playoffs following their 2-2 draw with Shrewsbury yesterday night.

Warne’s team only needs four more points from their remaining two games to secure Championship football for the upcoming season with a final score of 90. Bolton and Peterborough, who are now in second and third place, respectively, are still in the hunt, but only one of them can score 89 points because they face each other on the last day and must hope for a mistake by Derby.

This weekend, the Rams go to Cambridge. Although Ferguson insists that Derby must triumph, the Rams can actually advance with a draw and a victory over Carlisle on the last day of play.

Ferguson remarked following Peterborough’s 4-1 victory over Fleetwood last night: “We had some luck, but we were able to come out on top.” I’ve gone all in when we get to 1-1. With four more goals and three on goal differential, it’s a good night.

“Let’s see where this leads. Bolton drew, therefore we now need a point to guarantee a home match in the second leg of the playoffs. Football operates in many peculiar ways, thus Derby must win on Saturday. While I was pretty happy with some aspects of it, the most important thing was to win and receive a response from Saturday.

“Jonno’s performance—scoring two goals and creating one—is a huge plus. Significant pluses include Malik joining the club and scoring a goal and David Ajiboye entering and setting one up. There are many of advantages to consider. There were many excellent performances; Ephron Mason-Clark’s fourth goal was just amazing, and the goalie saved two penalties.”

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