Speaking to the press ahead of this weekend’s clash against Middlesbrough at The Valley, Lee Bowyer stressed the importance of sticking together, gave his view on our opponents and provided an injury update.
When asked about what is set to be an important fixture near the bottom of the table, Bowyer explained that the players will need to stick together to try and get a positive result.
“You could say it’s a test of mental strength, but it’s about our togetherness as well. The players have to show that out there. That’s not just for the players on the pitch though, that’s for all the players that are around the place."
Bowyer's full pre-match press conference is available on Valley Pass.
He continued, explaining the difficulties of the Championship.
“It’s a situation where it will come down to who handles it best. Who’ll come out fighting and who will get the points to stay in this division. This league is so tight. If you look at the time where we had all the injuries when we were losing, we were only losing by one goal. And we had so many people out and yet we were still in every game. There’s not much in this league at all.
“If you go through a stage of missing chances or making mistakes defensively you could go on to lose three, eight or even 12 games on the spin.
"It’s times like this you come together as a group and fight and that’s what my players will be doing. Last week was not a nice experience and they hurt. I know and they know what’s at stake and what they need to do get over the line."
When asked about Saturday’s opponents, Bowyer gave his take on the side and their position in the league reiterating the level of competition in the league.
“I think they’re good. This league… I think you can do not a lot wrong. I watched Monday’s game and I thought they were unlucky not to win. Jonathan will be disappointed because they dominated the game for large periods and they should have put it to bed really.
“There’s pressure on every team up and down the country for one reason or another. We’re in the run in now for the last ten games and like I said, both teams will go out there and try and win the game. I have no doubt that Jonathan [Woodgate] will be getting his side ready.
I know it’s going to be a tough game but I trust my players and I know that they will go out there and fight for every ball.”
Bowyer also provided an update on the Addicks injury list ahead of the fixture
“Darren Pratley’s back training, so hopefully he can get through today and tomorrow and get back into the squad. Naby Sarr is just going miss out, he’ll start training next week. It’s just a bit too soon for him. Tom [Lockyer] is suspended still. But apart from that, everything’s the same.”
