Derby County will look to extend their unbeaten run to four matches when they welcome Queen Parks Rangers to Pride Park Stadium on Monday night.
The Rams won 3-2 at home to second-placed Bournemouth last Sunday before drawing 0-0 at league leaders Fulham in midweek.
Wayne Rooney's men are bottom of the table and 19 points adrift of safety with one point, having received a total deduction of minus-21.
The R's enter the fixture inside the play-off places in sixth and know victory would see them climb to third.
Mark Warburton's side are on a five-game unbeaten run - winning three and drawing two.
They are looking for their third consecutive victory following back-to-back home wins against Luton Town and Huddersfield Town.
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Team news
Derby will still be without Lee Buchanan, Sam Baldock, Jack Stretton and Krystian Bielik due to their respective injuries.
Festy Ebosele will be available despite cramping up in the last two matches.
QPR defender Sam McCallum remains sidelined with a hamstring injury, but Moses Odubajo, Lyndon Dykes and Andre Gray could return.
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Predicted line-ups
Derby County: Roos; Byrne, Jagielka, Davies, Forsyth; Bird, Thompson, Shinnie; Ebosele, Lawrence, Knight.
Queens Park Rangers: Dieng; Dickie, Dunne, Barbet; Adomah, Dozzell, Johansen, Wallace; Chair; Austin, Willock.
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Ones to watch
Midfielder Liam Thompson is the Rams' one to watch.
The 19-year-old made his league debut in the win against Bournemouth and kept his place for the trip to Fulham.
He completed the full 90 minutes in both fixtures and didn't look out of his depth, leading to praise from Rooney.
After the Fulham game, Rooney said: "Liam made his debut on Sunday, played 90 minutes, and 90 minutes again tonight, and he has been fantastic - as good a two games I have seen from anyone from their first two games."
Moroccan midfielder Ilias Chair is Rangers' player to watch.
The 24-year-old is their joint-top goalscorer with six and has also provided five assists in all competitions.
Chair scored the winner when QPR beat Derby 2-1 in February 2020 and will be looking to do the same again.
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Previous meetings
Both sides recorded 1-0 away wins when they met last season.
However, that was the first time the R's had won at Pride Park since 2009, with five defeats and two draws beforehand.
They also faced each other in the 2014 Championship play-off final, and QPR 1-0 won thanks to a last-minute Bobby Zamora goal.
In total, they've met 61 times. The Rams have won 23 to Rangers' 18, with 20 draws.
Most recent meeting:
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How to watch
The match starts at 19:45 GMT on Monday 29 November 2021 and will be available to watch on Sky Sports Main Event (channel 401) and Sky Sports Football (channel 403).
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What the managers have said
Derby boss Wayne Rooney spoke to Rams TV ahead of the game - here's what he said.
"We’ve had two very difficult games in the last week, but the lads were excellent in both of them," Rooney said.
“The win against Bournemouth was massive for us and it set us up well for the trip to Fulham, which was always going to be a tough test.
“We created some good opportunities, which we believed we would do, and the lads fought until the final whistle to get a point; they’ve been fighting all season.
“It is good for the lads to see that we can compete with the best teams in this league.
“We will go into Monday’s game confident and believing that we can get three points."
He added: “We are unbeaten against the league’s top six ahead of the weekend and we now have a difficult fixture coming up against Queens Park Rangers on Monday.
“They are having a good season and like I keep saying, every game in this league is tough.
“You have to be at it in every game to get the result you want.
“Monday night, at home, will see another great atmosphere and I know the fans will be right behind the lads.”
QPR manager Mark Warburton spoke to their club media ahead of Monday's clash.
“It was an important win for us [against Huddersfield in midweek], we had to meet the challenge against a good team," Warburton said.
“They were very organised and dangerous, it was a nip-and-tuck in the first half but we were much more dominant in the second half and deserved the win.
“Now, we face a very different challenge. This is our toughest game of the season so far.
“The points deduction has happened and it’s out of their (Derby’s) control – but they can play with real freedom and express themselves now.
“Not many teams will get four points out of Bournemouth and Fulham. They’ll have a target in mind and you have to respect that, otherwise you’ll get hurt.
“The players and staff will feel a sense of injustice and will come out firing. They have a passionate crowd who will feel that injustice as well.
“Twenty-one points is some deduction but they have a fantastic setup and something to aim for. You should never under estimate a group of players and staff when they have something to play for.”
On being in the top six: “It beats being 19th this time last year! But the moment you look too far ahead is when you lose concentration.
“It’s all about mindset. The players have shown in 2021 their ability to go and get results both home and away.
“We’re just taking one game at a time. We want to keep pushing and put some daylight between us and other teams.
“We’re showing more resilience and right now, we’re in a good place. But the league is so tight and we have to focus on what is going to be a really stern test at Pride Park.”