Oldham Athletic manager Lee Johnson believes his side are ready to ‘kick on’ up the League One table when they travel to face Notts County at the weekend – after going on a five game unbeaten run.
The club sit 13th in the League One table after a 2-2 draw against Swindon last week having taken ten points from eight games.
But despite the recent run of success, Johnson expects a tough game on Saturday.
“It will be a tense and tight game, like they all are in League One, but one both teams will feel they will get a result from,” he told the club’s website.
“We have just got to go into this game taking the confidence of good performance and put in a winning performance.
“It’s important we pick up a win.”
Saturday’s opponents Notts County are without a win in three, and were dominated by Leyton Orient in midweek, but Johnson has warned against complacency.
“They have [Jake] Cassidy up front who is a threat,” he said.
“They have also got [Zeil] Ismail on loan from Wolves who is a threat and they have experienced players in the midfield with a young back four.
“All of these are organised by veteran goalkeeper Roy Carroll so they have done well.
“They have a good blend to their squad similar to ours and that will stand them in good stead.”
And Johnson will be especially wary, given fresh injury concerns from Tuesday night.
“Forte is going to train today and we will assess him. We’ve got to take his fitness into account as he has missed a few weeks but he’s a naturally fit guy so that stands him in good stead,” Johnson said.
“Dayton took a bit of a knock against Swindon so we’ll assess him as well and play the two against each other and see who comes out on top.
“I’m delighted with the competition in the squad at the moment and it is keeping everybody on their toes.”
One player in particular looking to make an impact will be Amari Morgan-Smith, who scored his first goal for the Latics against Swindon after signing from Kidderminster Harriers in June.
And the 25-year-old believes he can contribute more.
Speaking to the club’s website after the win on Tuesday, Morgan-Smith said: “I’ll always get in and try to convert chances.
“I had a chance in the last game which I should have scored, so it’s nice to make up for it tonight and hopefully get more.”
“If we have a better first half, we will have a good chance of winning the game [against Notts County].
“We’ll go there and try and get the three points.”
Image courtesy of officialOAFC, via YouTube, with thanks
