Aiming for perfection, Forest Green boss Robbie Savage is leaving no stone unturned as Rovers lock horns in the National League Cup with Warren Joyce’s Nottingham Forest B at the New Lawn tonight, 7pm.
Listen to Robbie Savage’s full pre-match press conference, including a look back on a frustrating draw at Wealdstone.
A win would see Rovers qualify for the quarter-finals and Savage expects to name a strong starting eleven: “This competition has been beneficial for us massively. We want to win it, we want to get into the quarter final, and we want to give our young players every opportunity to develop while keeping the squad fresh for the National League.”
Savage revealed he spoke to Forest boss Sean Dyche on Sunday as he prepares for the club’s upcoming cup fixture. “I spoke to Sean Dyche for 10 minutes on Sunday, because this competition is great for young players. It’s also great for us to give minutes for players who need minutes and tonight it will be a very, very, very strong team. You could argue the team I put out could compete at the weekend in the National League itself,” Savage said.
Savage also highlighted how he is using his extensive contacts in football to identify promising young talent. “After a conversation with Sean (Dyche), in this competition we’ve highlighted young players from opposition who’ve come to us on loan because, and Nottingham Forest, I believe we’ll have some very, very good young players. And the conversation with Sean was if we identify a couple, it’s an opportunity to take some. And he knows how we treat young players at this football club and how they’ve developed. I’ve got relationships with these clubs like Leicester, West Brom, Nottingham Forest, that if we identify talent and they want them to loan out and get a great experience, that we’re in the prime position with a lot of teams because of what we’re doing with their loan players. So the competition has been beneficial for us massively. It’s a competition we want to win. It’s a competition we want to get into the quarter final. It’s a competition that we’ve enjoyed.”
Savage confirmed that striker José Marquez will miss the cup match due to a hamstring injury sustained at his loan club Dorking. “We found out on Sunday, from very late, he didn’t play at the weekend and we found out that he’s injured. I had a good chat with Mark White, who’s been brilliant with José. There’s been a miscommunication… a little bit disappointed. But he’s getting assessed to see how he is. He’s enjoyed his time there, Mark and Dorking have been great with him. He got his loan moves because of this competition and he featured in the first team because of it.”
Other squad news is positive, with Luke McNicholas set to start in goal and Max Robson expected to play 45 minutes. Nick Haughton, Christian Doidge, Ryan Inniss, Harry Cardwell will start and Adam May may feature.
Savage said: “This competition has given opportunities when players performed in it to be part of our first team. They will all give everything. They always do, they always will, because they know how competitive it is to get in the 18 on a Saturday.”
With another potential foray into the transfer market, Savage praised the support of Forest Green owner Dale Vince. “My owner is incredible. We have conversations every day… He is so engaged and he so wants us, me, my staff, the players to do well. He is determined to give us the best opportunity to be successful. Honestly, it’s a privilege and a pleasure being this manager of this football club. You can see it, you can see the emotion. I live and breathe it.”
Despite four straight wins and a draw leaving Forest Green just a point off the top of the table, Savage admitted he is determined to get more from his team. He said: “We can be better. And the biggest frustration is that last season… we drew too many games. But our mentality is, if you draw it and go win it, three points are so crucial. On every draw, there will be an emphasis of let’s go and try and win it. And if we get beat, we get beat.”
Savage also emphasised the style of football he wants to see. “The football we’re playing is probably one of the best brands of football this club has ever seen, and that’s credit to my players, my staff. I try and manage them because they know they can go and play free. It’s work harder, run more, defend as a team, attack as a team, and shoot. Simple as that. The more times you shoot, the better chance you’ve got of scoring. But we don’t shoot. I’m getting frustrated. Not 40 yards, but inside the box… don’t have a fear factor. There’s no fear factor with me. I’ll get frustrated if you don’t shoot. I don’t mind if you smash the ball over the bar. Just shoot, because I’ll never have a go at your place.”
