Tuesday 25th July, 2017 at 1:01pm
Thistle head to Lanarkshire to take on League One side Airdrieonians in the latest round of the Betfred Cup.,
With confidence high in the camp, the squad are ready for their third Betfred Cup group tie and manager Alan Archibald spoke to ptfc.co.uk shortly after the final training session on Monday afternoon.
“We’re ready for the game against Airdrie. The players are all still on a high after Saturday’s victory against St. Mirren. That result has brought us back into the group but we know we need to follow it up with another two results against Airdrie and Stranraer.
“Airdrie will be a very tricky game for the squad. We played them last season and deservedly won the game, but it was very tight and we only edged past them 1-0.”
The trip to the Excelsior Stadium brings Thistle’s first encounter with artificial surfaces this season and the manager knows it won’t be an excuse during the ninety minutes.
“We train on artificial surfaces throughout the year so we are very familiar with them. The surface at Airdrie is a little different to the one we use at Lesser Hampden but we’ll be ready to play on it. The artificial surfaces are usually good at letting you get the ball down and pass it, which is a real advantage for us in the style of football that we like to play.
With Abdul Osman missing out due to suspension the gaffer knows that he will have to change his team, but it’s just another opportunity for someone else to put themselves into the selection picture.
“Abdul will miss out through suspension which means we’ll have to bring a body in to midfield. We know that both Ryan Edwards and Andrew McCarthy are very capable replacements and whoever we select will be looking to stake their own claim for a starting slot moving forward.”
More exclusive preview interviews with Christie Elliott as well as Jags gaffer Alan Archibald are now available to Jagzone subscribers. Log in now to see them. Jagzone members will also be able to watch highlights of the game.
Can’t make it to Airdrie? Jagzone members can listen to live audio commentary of the match. JagZoneLIVE begins at 7:15
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