Grant McCann says he’s expecting a difficult game against this weekend’s opponents MK Dons as he celebrates his 250th game in charge of Doncaster Rovers down in Buckinghamshire.
Rovers were soundly beaten on Tuesday evening against promotion hopefuls Luton Town at Kenilworth Round in a missed opportunity to build some much-needed momentum following the jubilation of last Saturday’s victory over Sheffield Wednesday on home soil.
McCann’s men, however, have made clear progress, picking up three wins from their last six games after a winless run in their prior six matches.
MK Dons have also grown into the season. Paul Warne’s side climbed up to 14th in the table after an emphatic 4-1 win over Bromley and have also won the same amount as Rovers in the last six after a slow winless start.
“When you're playing against Paul's teams, you know they're going to be physical, they're going to be aggressive in your face, organised,” said McCann.
“So we know what we're coming up against. We've obviously had them watched) and we've prepared for them for the last couple of days.”
After the heroics of Saturday, Rovers went unchanged for the loss to Luton, but will they shuffle the pack this time around?
Here’s our predicted lineup.
9. Jordan Thomas
Hakeeb Adelakun failed to impress at Kenilworth Road, meaning the door could potentially be open for Jordan Thomas to make his first start since injury against Burton Albion. He said he's aiming to get 'fans off their seats' this season after a stop-start campaign due to injury so far. | Howard Roe AHPIX LTD 07973739229 [email protected]
10. Isaac Hutchinson
The former Cheltenham Town playmaker was another that didn't hit the heights of last Saturday against Luton Town but he's still a creative presence in the middle of the park, who'll hope to make more of this game if given a start. | Howard Roe
11. Alfie May
This one largely depends on fitness, but McCann could potentially bring Alfie May back into the starting lineup. McCann described him as a 'true leader' in pre-season and one of best number nines in the division. He could come in for Will Keane, who's minutes will need to be managed after his free transfer in October. | Howard Roe