Rotherham United: Warne banks on more options for Millers' Brentford clash

Rotherham United hope to be strengthened by five extra players as they look to put the 5-0 drubbing at Cardiff City behind them.
Tom AdeyemiTom Adeyemi
Tom Adeyemi

The Millers travel to London on Saturday to take on Brentford in the Championship and the side should be far different to the one which surrendered in South Wales last weekend.

Loan duo centre-half Semi Ajayi and midfielder Tom Adeyemi return after missing out against their parent club at Cardiff City Stadium, and caretaker boss Paul Warne is optimistic top scorer Danny Ward and midfield man Lee Frecklington will recover from injury.

Danny WardDanny Ward
Danny Ward
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Rotherham will be further boosted if centre-forward Carlton Morris arrives in South Yorkshire this week after signing on loan from Norwich City during last month’s transfer window but remaining in Norfolk to receive treatment on a hamstring problem.

“I’ll have Ajayi back, I’ll have Adeyemi back, I’ll have Wardy back,” Warne said. “With any luck, by the weekend I’ll have Frecks. I’ll have Morris coming in from Norwich.

“So I can add possibly five better players than the ones we had against Cardiff.”

Striker Ward injured his calf in the match before the Cardiff clash, the 3-2 midweek defeat against Huddersfield Town when the Millers twice led against David Wagner’s promotion-chasers before losing in time added on.

Lee FrecklingtonLee Frecklington
Lee Frecklington
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Captain Frecklington hasn’t played since January 2 but has been closing in on a comeback after undergoing surgery on his troublesome ankle.

Warne branded the loss against the Bluebirds “embarrassing” but said he was confident he could lift his men ahead of the trip to the Bees.

“We are a little squad. I’m not going to destroy the lads,” he said. “We performed well against Huddersfield. Maybe Cardiff was just a step too far against a team in form. Whatever could go wrong did go wrong.

“I have to accept the fact my lads under-performed and we lost 5-0. It’s a better way to think than we played at our best and lost 5-0. It would be a very depressing situation for me if that’s the best we’ve got and we’ve lost 5-0.”

Danny WardDanny Ward
Danny Ward
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Rotherham are bottom of the second tier and are 15 points from safety with 13 games remaining.

Brentford will be without Alan Judge, who is still recovering from a broken leg, at Griffin Park while fellow midfielder Alan McCormack is also a doubt.

“Alan Judge is around us. He’s still non contact,” said manager Dean Smith. “Alan McCormack has had a bit of a knockback. He had a groin strain and then felt his calf.”

Rotherham reserves beat Hartlepool United reserves 3-0 at Roundwood today thanks to an Alex Bray goal and a double from substitute Suleman Naeem.

Right-back Darnell Fisher, playing for the first time since a pulled hamstring, limped off in the 16th minute.