"One Of The Best Games Of The Season"

Roberto Martinez was looking forward to this afternoon’s encounter with Doncaster after the capture of three deadline day signings for his squad.

Martinez was a busy man as the transfer window closed bringing in David Knight from Boro, Warren Feeney on loan from Cardiff and Andrea Orlandi from Alaves. But it was Saturday’s match that was understandably high on his agenda as he spoke to the press at their usual Friday gathering – believing that the game against Doncaster will be one of the best this season.

Roberto’s logic behind that stems from, he believes, Doncaster also trying to play football the right way meaning for an open and entertaining game. The mind then slips back almost two years to Chesterfield arriving at the Liberty Stadium when we played some good football under Jackett and being torn apart as they tried to play a similar game to us. A 5-1 result unravelled that afternoon and a similar one would do nicely today.

Talking to the Western Mail, Roberto said “Doncaster are one of the best sides in League One

They have spent money and brought in a few very talented players.

“They play the game in a very exciting and attacking way and it will be a huge contest. The pitch will be magnificent and both teams will try to play the game.

“It will be one of the most exciting games in League One this season.

“It will be a huge test. It will be an open game because both teams have a philosophy based on scoring goals.

“I can’t wait and I think it will be a great advert for League One because the quality of the two squads is quite impressive.

“They have had a slow start which probably makes them desperate to get a result

That will make them even more dangerous because they have got a very powerful squad.

“They will play their normal game and they will show a great determination to get a result. You should always play the way you want to play, you shouldn’t change your style just because things aren’t going your way.

“They will be up there at the end of the season. The quality of players they’ve got and the way they try to use their strengths in their approach to the game, will make them one of the forces in League One.

“Tactically, they are one of the best teams in the division. Their movement is outstanding and the way they try to play is out of this league.

“The way they play is the main threat. It’s not normal to get that style in League One and I would say that’s their strength.

“They create uncertainty because their movement and passing is up to the highest level. Then you have goalscorers like Paul Heffernan, who really know what it takes to be successful in this division.

“They are a strong outfit and they are a very positive club. They want to get promoted in exactly the same way we do.

“It’s fantastic to see the response of the fans and they do make a difference. The players see how the fans react and it does affect our performances.

“We want to win any game we play in and it doesn’t matter how many people are watching. But it’s a huge compliment to the players and a huge advantage when you have the fans behind you because they are the best fans in the league.

“It can be an intimidating situation for the opposition when you play at the Liberty Stadium and we need to take advantage of that.”

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This article first appeared on JACKARMY.net.