WE WANT TO FACE CITY STARS, PEP!
Millers defender’s FA Cup message to Guardiola:
ROTHERHAM centre-back Clark Robertson has urged Pep Guardiola to deploy the full might of Manchester City’s attacking riches at the Etihad this afternoon.
The Millers, promoted from League One in May, have won just two of their last 19 games and currently sit three points above the relegation zone.
One of the poorest teams in the Championship, their entire playing budget wouldn’t even cover Sergio Aguero’s annual salary. Bookies, meanwhile, are offering odds of 40-1 on the mother of all FA Cup shocks.
After their exertions against Liverpool on Thursday night, Guardiola will be tempted to rest his big-hitters but Robertson, a summer signing from Blackpool, hopes the Spaniard resists – even if it means a hiding.
“Watching the draw at home, all I wanted was one of the big boys to come out,” says the 25-year-old Scot. “I certainly got that.
“City are one of the best teams in the world right now. And when you play lower league football like us, you never know when - or if – you’ll get the chance to play against these sort of players again.
“So yeah, let’s see Aguero, De Bruyne, Sterling, all those guys. We know what they can do, but we’d all love the chance to test ourselves against the very best.
“Regardless of whether they drop players or not, it’ll be a world-class team. They’ve got two players in every position who would probably get into any other team in the Premier League. Even their second XI would probably be a top six team.
“It’ll be hard, we know that. They’ve beaten plenty of teams by five or six, and teams who are a lot better than us. But we’ll go there, get men behind the ball, be compact. It’s all about shutting off the space, though it’s easier said than done.”
One team who did exactly that was Wigan, who sensationally knocked City out of the competition as a League One side last term.
Crucial
“They were at home, which makes a difference,” says Robertson. “But we’ll watch a bit of that game and see if we can take something from what Wigan did.
“Set-pieces will obviously be crucial and they’re one of our strongest points. We always look a threat from corners and free-kicks. We’ve got long throws as well. I doubt City will have come up against that too many times.
“And there’s no point going there, being scared and standing off players. Respect their quality, yes, but let them know you aren’t afraid of it.” Robertson,
right, missed Rotherham’s 2-1 victory over Preston on New Year’s Day after rolling an ankle in training but will be fit to face City at the Etihad.
“An injury like that, it’s the initial shock,” he added. “For about five-ten minutes after you’re thinking ‘Oh no, is it a bad one?’. I had a test on Tuesday morning and it still didn’t feel quite right. But it came back clear and I’ve been out running since Thursday so I should be fine.”
Pressure
And after a slew of relegation six-pointers against the likes of Reading, Bolton and Preston over the festive period, the defender can’t wait for a – relatively – easy day at the Etihad. “The last few games have been against relegation rivals,” said Robertson. “Every one of them comes with a lot of pressure to pick up points. This is a good break from that. “The pressure is all on them and it’s kind of a free shot for us. But if we could get something out of the game on Sunday, I’m sure it would boost us for the season as well.”