Paul Warne talks to www.themillers.co.uk...
Paul Warne insists his Rotherham United side will not be underestimating the size of the challenge as Gillingham visit AESSEAL New York Stadium this weekend in Sky Bet League One.
The Millers host the Gills, who enjoyed a win over Peterborough United in their last outing and have enjoyed a resurgence under caretaker boss Steve Lovell, with Warne adamant that his side will not take their opponents lightly this weekend.
“We've done a lot of work on them already and we'll train harder today and go through it again tomorrow,” he told www.themillers.co.uk.
“We'll prepare the lads like we always do, in fact, we'll probably give them more information because we don't want to think lightly of them, which I'm sure they won't do.
“I think they've improved under the caretaker.
“They've picked up. Obviously the most notable one for me was winning away at Peterborough. We didn't win there and they've done well.
“They played Northampton and only narrowly lost to them 2-1 and we beat them but it was a tough, tough game for us.”
The Millers boss believes that Saturday’s opponents have notably increased their self-belief in recent matches, enjoying more prolonged spells of possession as a result.
“I think they are playing with a bit of confidence and they can come here Saturday with not a lot of pressure on them to get a result,” Warne continued.
“They have been playing reasonably well in the games. They've had a lot of the ball in the last game especially and they've got some good players who can be a problem.”
Warne will be well-aware of the man responsible for most of the Gills’ goals this season, with Tom Eaves likely to start in attack at AESSEAL New York Stadium on Saturday.
The Millers boss admitted that his defenders will have to be on top form to prevent the one-time loanee from continuing his fine vein of form in front of goal.
“I know they've got Tom Eaves who is back up front and he's a handful for anyone on his day. By no means are we underestimating them,” Warne added.
“He's a handful. He's a big, strong lad and on his day he's virtually unplayable. He's a good kid to be fair and I'll look forward to seeing him after the game if we've beaten them. He will be a handful and the centre halves will have to be ready for what he'll do.”