Head coach David Artell
Head coach David Artell
Head coach David Artell and defender Cameron McJannet provided their final thoughts ahead of Grimsby Town’s big .
for what will be the first match-up between the two clubs since 1948, back when were a Division One club, with a sold-out Blundell Park ready to welcome the Red Devils.
Ruben Amorim and his team, who have picked up just one point from their first two Premier League outings this term, would very much like to avoid embarrassment against Town, who have made an unbeaten start to the season through six matches.
The Premier League giants are playing in the second round of the Carabao Cup for the first time since 2014, when they were shocked by League One MK Dons. However, they have not lost to a team in the fourth tier in this competition in 11 ties.
Artell said: “It’s a brilliant test, and we want this to be a great platform for the players, but hopefully not the pinnacle of the season or their careers, because there is so much more we want to achieve and we want them to achieve.
“I’ve not got internal questions about the players about what they’ve done in the last week to prepare for this game because they’ve shown their professionalism across the board so far.
“We want to play with freedom, both in attacking and defending sense and stick to our principles, no matter the opposition and whatever the result, we’ll come in and know that we gave it our all.
“This game is all about testing ourselves against the very best. They played well against Fulham and against Arsenal; they were outstanding, so these are world-class players, and our players can test themselves against it, which for me is exciting.”
Artell's message has been clear throughout, and he has commended the professionalism of his team since the draw, having had three league games to contend with.
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That emphasis on keeping things normal and continuing to develop the team’s principles of play, even ahead of such a game, has remained, and the players will approach it as they have been instructed.
McJannet added: “You’ve just got to go out there with no fear, stick to our principles as a team and trust that will make us competitive in the game.
“Not much has changed in our preparation. We prepared in the same way for Accrington, and in the way the games have come in thick and fast, it hasn’t allowed us to overthink about this game in particular.
“We might have looked at a few more players than we usually do in our homework, with the amount of options they have, but we do it in the same way that we usually do, which has been helpful in keeping things normal.
“There won’t be an empty seat in the house, and the fans will be massively important, and we know they will be there for us.”
Town’s unbeaten form to start the campaign should help with their mentality heading into Wednesday night, even though it will be a big step up in competition, and they will try their best to make the game itself memorable as well as the occasion.
Cameron McJannet said 'You’ve just got to go out there with no fear' (Image: Jon Corken)
It comes as Grimsby Town has announced it has cancelled a small number of tickets in the home section of Blundell Park. It was found that they had been purchased by Manchester United supporters using 1878 Club Memberships.
In a statement, the club said: "This action has been taken in line with EFL Ground Regulations to protect the safety of all supporters and ensure home areas are occupied by Grimsby Town fans only. As with all fixtures at Blundell Park, any supporters wearing opponent apparel will not be admitted into the home end.
"These cancelled tickets will be re-sold to fans on the waiting list. We thank Mariners fans for their understanding and cooperation as we continue to make supporter safety our top priority."