Paul Warne was relieved Derby remain in the FA Cup after a last-gasp comeback earned them a 2-2 first-round draw at Crewe.
Two goals in five minutes from Nathan Mendez-Laing and Conor Hourihane rescued the Rams as they looked down and out at Gresty Road.
Courtney Baker-Richardson’s far-post finish before the interval and an Elliott Nevitt strike early in the second half appeared to have set the League Two side on their way to an impressive win.
But Crewe goalkeeper Harvey Davies let Mendez-Laing’s shot slip through his hands in the 89th minute and the attacker then teed up Hourihane, who hit a fine finish into the top corner to level the game in added time.
“We got away with it, but I think if we didn’t at least get a draw then Crewe would have got away with it as I thought we were smoking them,” said Derby boss Warne.
“I thought the lads played really well and we had unbelievable opportunities in the first half, but it didn’t seem like it was going to go in for us.
“For the first goal we didn’t stop the cross and I was also disappointed with the second, but the lads kept going.
“In certain games this season they have been questioned, but they answered those questions today and, even if we’d lost 2-0, I’d have come out and said I was pleased with the performance.
“There was the odd tackle and header we missed, but in general I thought we controlled the game really well and tried to create chances.
“Crewe had five across the back and we didn’t really test the keeper enough. If we’d scored in the first half we might have gone on to win handsomely, but give credit to Crewe for making it difficult for us.
“Overall to get a draw it does feel like we’re leaving here with a win.”
Up until the final minutes Crewe were resilient at the back, while they were dangerous on the break.
In the first half Davies produced a fine reaction save with his feet to keep out Conor Washington’s glancing header and Baker-Richardson cleared Sonny Bradley’s header off the line.
Crewe edged ahead when Rio Adebisi drove over an excellent cross to offer Baker-Richardson a simple finish.
After the break Mendez-Laing should have levelled but headed over from six yards after Korey Smith swung over a cross.
Derby’s woes increased when Nevitt took Baker-Richardson’s pass and finished off the far post.
Warne made five changes, but it looked to be in vain after one of them, James Collins, had a goal ruled out for offside.
But then Davies’ blunder set up a grandstand finish, with both sides still in the hunt to take on Bristol Rovers in the second round.
Crewe boss Lee Bell said: “The players are disappointed to end up drawing the game, but they were brilliant today.
“We had 12 fit players to choose from and we had Conor Thomas out there playing his first game for some time, while Mickey Demetriou played with a broken toe.
“If we’d had three or four extra players available like Derby did to keep them going at the end the outcome may have been different.
“I’d have taken that before the game when you consider the problems we have and knowing the story behind today.
“But we have high expectations and we might have missed an opportunity to knock a big club in Derby County out of the FA Cup.”
Postecoglou: Spurs have a confidence problem to overcome
Ange Postecoglou says that Tottenham need to "overcome" their low confidence after suffering a 4-2 defeat to Liverpool on Sunday.
Spurs slipped to their fourth consecutive Premier League defeat, being left to bemoan their slow start as they found themselves 4-0 down by the hour mark thanks to goals from Mohamed Salah, Andrew Robertson, Cody Gakpo and Harvey Elliott.
Richarlison came off the bench to salvage some pride for Spurs, scoring one before setting up Son Heung-min for a goal on his 300th Premier League appearance.
Spurs had the opportunity to cut the gap to the top four after Aston Villa’s defeat to Brighton, but they remain seven points off a Champions League spot.
Postecoglou’s side still have a game in hand over the Villans, though he was sure that Spurs would be able to put their recent poor run behind them.
Asked if Spurs had a confidence problem, Postecoglou told Sky Sports: "Maybe in the front third there is.
"It probably is a bit of a lack of confidence, but again, that's something the guys have to work through.
"You have to find a way to overcome that because, ultimately, if you don't put pressure on the opposition in the front third after you've worked your way up there, they're going to get comfortable with their position."
Spurs have won just one of their last nine Premier League away games, failing to win any of the last five.
Despite that run extending at Anfield, Postecoglou highlighted what he thought was an improvement on their recent performances.
He continued: "Obviously a hugely disappointing outcome for us but at least we were more like ourselves today in terms of our football.
"Our last two away games at Newcastle and Chelsea, apart from the results which weren't great either, we just didn't try and play our football.
"I thought today, even in the first half, some of our football, our pressing was back to where it should be."
Roma 1-1 Juventus: Juve miss chance to close gap to second after draw with Roma
Juventus were held to a 1-1 draw at Roma on Sunday, missing the chance to close in on Milan in second place in Serie A.
Roma took the lead after 15 minutes when Romelu Lukaku found himself in the perfect position to tap in the rebound from a Bryan Cristante shot.
Bremer levelled with a header for Juventus just after the half-hour mark when Federico Chiesa picked him out inside the box from a corner.
Both sides had chances to find a winner in the final minutes, with Roma keeper Mile Svilar making a fingertip save to push Manuel Locatelli's volley over the bar.
Third-placed Juventus have 66 points, five fewer than Milan, who drew 3-3 with Genoa earlier on Sunday. Roma are fifth with 60 points.
Data Debrief: Leading from the back
Since scoring his first Serie A goal in the 2019-20 season, Bremer is the defender with the most headed goals in the Big-5 European leagues, netting 13 in total. Each of his last seven goals have been headers.
His goal was enough to earn Juventus a point today, but it means that they have drawn each of their last four in the competition - a first since February-March 2012 under Antonio Conte.
Chelsea 8-0 Bristol City: Blues rout hands Hayes perfect home send off
Guro Reiten starred as Chelsea thrashed already-relegated Bristol City 8-0 to keep their title hopes alive in the Women's Super League on Sunday.
The Norwegian scored four goals, netting the opener from the penalty spot to get Emma Hayes' last home game in charge off to the best start.
She scored the other three in the second half in just over 20 minutes, while teeing up Agnes Beever-Jones for the seventh goal with just two minutes left.
Beever-Jones got two, with Sjoeke Nusken and Niamh Charles also adding to the scoreline to eradicate the goal-difference advantage that Manchester City, who lost to Arsenal earlier on Sunday, had over them.
Chelsea move to within three points of the Citizens, with a game in hand over them, remaining in the fight to lift their fifth-consecutive league title.
Data Debrief:
Chelsea have scored eight goals in a game for the first time since December 2022 against Leicester City, a match they also won 8-0.
The Blues have scored in their last six games in the WSL, though it does not come close to their longest run of games with a goal in the competition - a run of 20 from April 2023 to February 2024.
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