U's boss Michael Appleton looks ahead to Chesterfield
Oxford United are all set for the new season. The U’s welcome Chesterfield to Grenoble Road for the first game in League One after promotion last time around and report a clean bill of health as they prepare to take on the Spireites.
“There’s going to be one or two of the players who are going to improve over the season and get better and better but the biggest thing for me was to get everybody fit and available. As it stands that looks to be the case” Michael Appleton told Yellow Player HD this morning. “It’s amazing what the first game of the season can do, it’s a fantastic healer” he joked.
“You’ve got to make sure that the players that are playing are ready and have the right mentality going into the game. Obviously there will be some disappointed player come Saturday but that’s management. Players need to stay positive and be ready at any moment. Whether that’s due to an injury, suspension or form, they need to be able to come into the side at any time.
“Chesterfield will be a very difficult game. I watched them the other night and although the eleven that will probably start didn’t all play together they all played some part in the game. I believe they have two players who should be playing in the top end of the Championship now and will be in the Premier League in the very near future. We have to be aware of them and the threat that Chesterfield represent.”
However, Michael has warned against anyone getting carried away with the excitement of kicking off in a higher league.
“ I thought that last season it got the better of us” he warned “ we all got too tense and too hyped and it cost us two points. Yes, it’s a big game- the big crowd will tell us that- but we just have to make sure that we do what we do well, and we make the players aware of what the opposition are about.”
See the full interview right now in Yellow Player HD