Robbie Savage will not be in the Forest Green Rovers dugout for Tuesday night’s game against Wealdstone after being given permission to speak to another club.
Rovers goalkeeper coach Jonathan Gould confirmed Savage’s absence at a press conference ahead of the National League fixture, with speculation continuing over the Forest Green manager’s future.
Savage has been granted permission to speak to another club, understood to be Peterborough United, who are looking for a new manager.
Gould, along with fellow members of the coaching staff Yan Klukowski and Josh Bowen, will oversee Tuesday night’s game at The New Lawn.
“Robbie won’t be with us,” Gould confirmed, who joined Rovers in the summer, having enjoyed a distinguished playing career with clubs including Coventry City, Bradford City and Preston North End. He made 157 appearances for Celtic, winning three Scottish league titles, three Scottish League Cups and a Scottish Cup during his time in Glasgow.
Asked whether he would lead proceedings in the dressing room, Gould said: “There’s a group of us obviously here. There’s myself, Yan, and Josh. We’ve obviously been working together now for five months through pre-season, and we know each other very well.
“We’ll bring all our strengths to the table for the team, and hopefully they go out and do themselves justice on the night because really it’s all about the team.”
Gould revealed that the players were informed first thing on Monday morning that Savage would not be present for the game.
“The lads obviously are aware of it, but ultimately it’s always their responsibility to go out and perform and that’s all we’re going to impress on them,” he said.
Asked about the players’ reaction, Gould added: “There’ll be disappointed ones at this moment in time, but we’ve just got to get on with what we’re doing as a group of people.
“And we represent the football club at the end of the day, and we also represent the last 15 months of what Robbie’s done and how well the club has progressed.”
Forest Green head into the game after Saturday’s dramatic 3-3 draw at Sutton United, where they twice held two-goal leads despite playing much of the second half with 10 men.
However, Rovers will be without midfielder Jayden Clarke and suspended defender Freddie Sass for Tuesday’s match.
“Jayden’s been exceptional this season,” Gould said.
“He’s been a driving force, he’s scoring goals, and him and Tate (Campbell) have forged a fabulous relationship in there. They’re a strong midfield pairing.”
Gould also paid tribute to Freddie Sass but insisted Forest Green have enough strength in depth to cope with his absence after the defender saw red in the second-half at Sutton.
“Freddie’s a good character and he wears his heart on his sleeve,” he said.
“We’ve got a good squad at this football club. We’ve got other left-footers in the building, and we’ve got other really good full-backs.”
With injuries and international call-ups also affecting the squad, Gould said around 18 or 19 players are currently available.
Gould also delivered an update on midfielder Oli Ewing, who came off the bench to score and then injured himself in the process: “I think it’s a really bad bruise by the looks of it, and he’s not one that would come off the field lightly, especially having scored such a fabulous goal. I mean, he nicked the ball and he goes through, and he shows strength, and he got scissored by two defenders and still had the quality to finish it. He didn’t want to come off, as we all saw. He’s a positive influence around the group, and he’ll remain that way until he’s fit again. We’re hoping that he’ll be fit for the next game.”
Gould, who worked under Tony Pulis at both West Bromwich Albion and Middlesbrough, while also holding coaching positions at Preston North End, Stoke City and with the New Zealand national team and prior to joining Rovers this summer, spent the past two years as goalkeeping coach at Auckland FC, helping the club secure both the Premier Plate and Grand Final titles.
Gould added: “It’s absolutely a fantastic football club, this. The setup is phenomenal. The backing that we get from the owner is brilliant.
“I got a great feel about this place when I walked in it. And it doesn’t matter whether it’s National League or not, if a club’s well run, you can feel it as soon as you come in.”
I’ve kind of have been here for years. I think I made my debut for Bristol Rovers reserve team in the Football Combination at the old ground at the Lawn all those years ago when they used to play there.
“I remember playing against Arsenal, Tottenham, and I think I scored an own goal on my debut against Charlton. So it did feel as if I’d come back to part of my personal past.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding Savage’s future, Gould believes the situation is ultimately a reflection of the progress made by the club.
“This is a positive thing for the football club because of the fact that Robbie has represented us and he might have an opportunity to go somewhere to fulfil some of his ambitions,” he said.
“That’s what we all want to do as players, and that’s what a lot of coaches want to do.”
