Gareth Ainsworth is expecting a physical contest on Saturday as Gillingham travel to Fleetwood Town.
The Cod Army have had a solid start to the season, beating Chesterfield twice (league and cup) with Ched Evans scoring on both occasions. Ainsworth believes that his side will play in front of a fantastic away support and is hopeful that they can repay them with a positive result.
Club captain Liam Gordon was forced off during the first-half of the defeat against Walsall after suffering an apparent knee injury. Ainsworth provided an update on Gordon's situation, stating that the diagnosis is better than what was initially feared.
Seb Palmer-Houlden left the Football Club on Wednesday morning, signing for Scottish Premiership side Motherwell. The Gills boss was pleased for the forward to get a move to a club currently competing in the Europa Conference League qualifiers, but admits they need to get it right when signing his replacement, with Ainsworth outlining how many more players could come in before the end of the window.
Update on Liam Gordon...
The only thing that I can say is that it's better than we thought. It doesn't look like anything major right now, which is good. I can't go into any more detail than that because there is medical confidentiality and things like that, but we feared the worst, and I don't think that we are getting the worst. I think that we are getting something lesser, which is good. I am sorry to be a bit cryptic, but with respect to Liam and my medical team, with the scan he still has still got a few more appointments and scans to go through.
He has twisted it [knee] and come down on it really heavy, but it's not as bad as we thought. We are hopeful on Liam. I think that with all that has been said, the signs are more positive. Having said that, he is not imminently going to be back. He has obviously gone off with a major knock, and we are going to have to make sure that he comes back and he is fully fit.
Looking to Fleetwood on Saturday...
They have played Chesterfield twice and beat them 1-0 twice in the cup and in the league, and Ched Evans has scored both goals. We know that he is a threat in front of goal. They are a decent side, and they were last year. They came here last year and turned us over in the last few minutes here at home; then away from home I remember getting beat.
They are going to be big, physical, aggressive and at you. We know what to expect, but I also have players who can do a bit more this season. I am excited. Being back up in the north-west, it's one of our longest trips of the season, but I know that we will travel well with the fans. I want to give them something to be happy coming home with.
On Seb Palmer-Houlden's departure to Motherwell...
It's a great opportunity for Seb. The financials really stack up for the club, so that was great. I think that we can safely say that we have done a good job with Seb and be proud of his move on. It's a success story for us because of bringing him in and making him a saleable asset, and like I said, the finances stack up well for the club, and we have got to make sure that we replace him now with the right player. What an opportunity for Seb.
What I will say is thank you, Seb, for all your efforts, as you gave me absolutely everything. Nothing short of everything every day. What a great lad to deal with. Hopefully, he goes on to really good things up north.
On the remaining transfer business to be done...
I personally think that we need three more in yet before the window closes, and I will be working really hard to get three new faces in.
Gareth’s exclusive interview with Gills TV can be seen here.
