27-09-2024, 07:57
Paul Heckingbottom wants his side to stand up to what he knows Millwall will look to throw at them this weekend.
North End head to the capital on Saturday to take on the Lions, who comfortably avoided the threat of relegation last season following the appointment of Neil Harris, who led them to 26 points from their final 13 matches.
There’s many similarities on paper between the way they and PNE have started the season. Both have taken five points from the opening six matches and head into the weekend on the back of a derby day draw – theirs coming against Queens Park Rangers.
Hecky said: “It’s always tough down there. Neil really picked up some results when he went back in at the end of last season and, although results have been mixed at the start of this, the style of play is still exactly the same.
“They’re going to try and put it on us. They’re going to try and play direct. They’re going to put balls in our box. They’re going to try and make forward runs. They’re not scared to have attempts on goal. You have to make sure that doesn’t catch you out. You have to be prepared for that.
“There’ll be no surprises to us in terms of what they’re going to do and how they’re going to try and get the win. Me saying it and coping with it is one thing and then another.
“It’s making sure we can deliver on the pitch and stand up to that because there’s lots of people who have gone down to Millwall knowing exactly what they’re going to face and have come away with nothing, and we want to make sure that’s not us.”
There are no fresh injury concerns for the manager to worry about heading down to London, however they’ve been looking after a slight issue with midfielder Stefán Thórdarson, which isn’t expected to rule him out of the weekend.
One man who will miss out, though, is Sam Greenwood following his sending off against Blackburn Rovers, which offers a chance for somebody else to take his place.
Hecky said: “That’s how we’ve been working in the games anyway because we’ve been pleased with the response of players whether it’s been on the training ground, how they’ve performed on the pitch, or when they’ve come off the bench.
“It’s another opportunity for someone else which is great. No matter who it is, no matter who we’re missing, I always think it’s a positive thing for someone to get an opportunity.”
In the aforementioned derby against Rovers last weekend, Mads Frøkjær made his 50th appearance for North End since his arrival in 2023.
The gaffer’s been impressed by what he’s seen of his creative No.10 so far, but he feels there may be much more to come.
Hecky said: “100% I want to see more from Mads. I really like him; I like his personality. I want to push him. He’s one of the ones that needs pushing, and we need to demand more from him but be really clear in what that is because he’s got big qualities.
“I’ve been really pleased with his work off the ball in the last couple of games. He played a huge role in that penalty shootout win over Fulham in terms of his role off the ball and his understanding because that’s what the game was.
“He was probably involved in most of our best moments at the weekend when we had 11 and I’ll always want more from him because I think he’s capable of more. I’m probably on his case at the minute, but I think he understands why.”
North End head to the capital on Saturday to take on the Lions, who comfortably avoided the threat of relegation last season following the appointment of Neil Harris, who led them to 26 points from their final 13 matches.
There’s many similarities on paper between the way they and PNE have started the season. Both have taken five points from the opening six matches and head into the weekend on the back of a derby day draw – theirs coming against Queens Park Rangers.
Hecky said: “It’s always tough down there. Neil really picked up some results when he went back in at the end of last season and, although results have been mixed at the start of this, the style of play is still exactly the same.
“They’re going to try and put it on us. They’re going to try and play direct. They’re going to put balls in our box. They’re going to try and make forward runs. They’re not scared to have attempts on goal. You have to make sure that doesn’t catch you out. You have to be prepared for that.
“There’ll be no surprises to us in terms of what they’re going to do and how they’re going to try and get the win. Me saying it and coping with it is one thing and then another.
“It’s making sure we can deliver on the pitch and stand up to that because there’s lots of people who have gone down to Millwall knowing exactly what they’re going to face and have come away with nothing, and we want to make sure that’s not us.”
There are no fresh injury concerns for the manager to worry about heading down to London, however they’ve been looking after a slight issue with midfielder Stefán Thórdarson, which isn’t expected to rule him out of the weekend.
One man who will miss out, though, is Sam Greenwood following his sending off against Blackburn Rovers, which offers a chance for somebody else to take his place.
Hecky said: “That’s how we’ve been working in the games anyway because we’ve been pleased with the response of players whether it’s been on the training ground, how they’ve performed on the pitch, or when they’ve come off the bench.
“It’s another opportunity for someone else which is great. No matter who it is, no matter who we’re missing, I always think it’s a positive thing for someone to get an opportunity.”
In the aforementioned derby against Rovers last weekend, Mads Frøkjær made his 50th appearance for North End since his arrival in 2023.
The gaffer’s been impressed by what he’s seen of his creative No.10 so far, but he feels there may be much more to come.
Hecky said: “100% I want to see more from Mads. I really like him; I like his personality. I want to push him. He’s one of the ones that needs pushing, and we need to demand more from him but be really clear in what that is because he’s got big qualities.
“I’ve been really pleased with his work off the ball in the last couple of games. He played a huge role in that penalty shootout win over Fulham in terms of his role off the ball and his understanding because that’s what the game was.
“He was probably involved in most of our best moments at the weekend when we had 11 and I’ll always want more from him because I think he’s capable of more. I’m probably on his case at the minute, but I think he understands why.”
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