Monk: We’ve had a mental and physical reset
CAMBRIDGE UNITED HOPING FOR VERY GOOD FRIDAY AT BARNSLEY
CAMBRIDGE United head coach Garry Monk is pleased that his side have had the opportunity to “reset” following a tough couple of games as they approach their end-of-season run-in.
The U’s return to action this afternoon with a clash away to fifthplaced Barnsley, having been without a fixture for almost two weeks due to the international break.
United headed into the break off the back of two resounding defeats, 6-0 and 4-0 losses at Lincoln City and Reading respectively, and Monk has been pleased to have had the chance to work with his players over an extended period for the first time since his appointment.
With the U’s embroiled in a relegation battle, sitting just three points above the drop zone with eight games to play, Monk expects to see some results from the work his side have been putting in moving forward.
“With this last couple of weeks on the training ground, it’s the first prolonged period to work with them,” the head coach said.
“We’ve done a lot of work, and we’re real hopeful, and the expectation is a lot of the fruit of that labour should come out in these games, that’s what we want to see.
“That’ll be starting from tomorrow, and taking it into the rest of the games.
“It came at the right time, because of the results we had, and often you want the next game to come to put things right, but I think the break came well.
“It gave me a chance to really work with the players, kind of reset ourselves a little bit. Not just on the pitch, but mentally and everything like that.
“I think that’s what they needed, and again getting a bit more work and detail, and stuff like that.
“It’s been a good two weeks, but it’s alright doing it on the training pitch, it’s putting it into the games.
“I think we’re in a good space judging by what I’ve seen in the last two weeks with the lads, and all the way up to today when doing the training. I expect to see some fruits of that labour from the hard work that we’ve been doing over the last couple of weeks.”
While United are 20th in League One, on 39 points from 38 matches played, Barnsley have registered 71 points, also from 38 games. They sit seven points off second-placed Derby County with two games in hand.
The Tykes have won just one of their last four matches, but Monk is under no illusions as to the strength of today’s opponents.
“It’s another team where they’ve got one of the strongest squads in the league. A highly-mobile team and really good technicians with the ball,” the head coach added. “I know that results wise, it looks on paper like they’ve maybe dipped in some of the results, but actually watching those games, they should’ve won those games by far. They’ve been missing opportunities.
“They’re a very good team, and that’s why they’re up competing where they are in the league. It’s going to be a tough game for us, but I expect to see a much stronger performance from us going into this game than we have done in the last two.”
A lot of the fruit of that labour should come out in these games.
Garry Monk