Nolan set to make wholesale changes against Walsall due to quick turnaround
Kevin Nolan says he will have to be extra careful with how he manages his squad this week ahead of two games in the space of 72 hours.
Cobblers host Walsall in the last-16 of the Vertu Trophy on Wednesday evening before Wycombe visit Sixfields for a League One fixture at the weekend.
Nolan, who’s confirmed that Lee Burge will start in goal on Wednesday, said: "I've made no secret of the fact that I want to do well in cup competitions. We were unfortunate with the draw in the Carabao Cup but we played really well on the night and could have gone through.
"The FA Cup, we were just really poor on the day and we deserved to go out, but we've done well in the EFL Trophy and we have been able to make changes and use the squad. People have come in and done themselves justice and there will be more changes this week because we're going Wednesday to Saturday, but all of the lads who feature against Walsall will be involved again at the weekend.”
EFL Trophy matches usually take place on Tuesdays but Walsall’s FA Cup game at Norwich on Sunday pushed their trip to Sixfields back a day, which means Cobblers will have 24 hours less to prepare for the visit of Wycombe.
"Going from Wednesday to Saturday will be tough on the lads but we've shown we can do it and we need to go and do it again and turn some of those draws into wins,” Nolan added. "It's a bit different because you're playing Wednesday night and you lose a few hours but we've worked really hard to make sure the squad is up to scratch and we will put out a team that we feel is strong enough to get us into the next round.
"I've done it in my career when we went Thursday to Sunday but these lads will be ready and there won't be any excuses. We're at home for both games and we want to win.”