New Motherwell signing Seb Palmer-Houlden could make his debut against Freiburg in the Conference League play-off, as manager Alfred Johansson awaits international clearance for the striker.
The Steelmen have agreed a fee to sign the 22-year-old from Gillingham. Palmer-Houlden, who was previously on loan at Dundee, is expected to bolster a forward line hit by injuries to Callum Hendry, Eythor Bjorgolfsson and Apostolos Stamatelopoulos.
Johansson expects clearance for Thursday's first leg
Motherwell take on the Bundesliga side in the first leg at Fir Park on Thursday. Johansson said: “We are hoping he will be involved tomorrow. We are waiting for international clearance, but it should be very doable.”
“When you have Stamo, Callum Hendry and Bjorgolfsson, all good No. 9s, but they aren’t ready to play. The guys filling in there have done brilliantly, even if it isn’t their best position.”
Johansson praised the new signing: “It is super positive and massive to have Seb here. We have been staying true with Nick (Daws, head of recruitment) and myself to make sure we get the right player and person in the door. Sometimes you have to wait for the right one. I am super happy we ended up with Seb on a permanent. He is a young, exciting striker who has a lot of attributes you are looking for in a No. 9.”
Injury list grows with Priestman and Koutroumbis out
Motherwell have added Oscar Priestman and Johnny Koutroumbis to the injury list, both facing at least a month out. This is on top of key players like captain Paul McGinn, Stephen O’Donnell and Tom Sparrow who have also been unavailable.
Johansson explained: “Since the competitive season started against HB, we have been playing a game every 3.5 days on average. We have been doing that with between seven and 10 players who have been unavailable. Since last week, Oscar Priestman and Johnny Koutroumbis have been added to the injury list. Both will be out for at least a month.”
Underdogs urged to be fearless against Freiburg
Motherwell go into the play-off as massive underdogs against the Bundesliga side, who made the Europa League final last season. Johansson urged a fearless approach: “You have to be yourself, fearless and do the things you are always doing. You have to have the confidence and bravery to do the things you normally do. You need to prioritise. It doesn’t make any sense to do something to get to this point and then to try and be somebody else. You have to be very demanding physically and mentally. That is how you punch above your weight class. I back my players to go into this game and do it once again.”
Johansson took Rosenborg into the play-offs last season before they lost to Mainz. He said: “Last season, I was also in the play-offs against Mainz, who were also a very strong team. It is definitely up there. We are so happy and proud to be here. We are so excited to get going in front of all our people. It will be another buzzing night at Fir Park, with a sell-out. I am excited. I see everyone together, we have a chance to learn a lot and try our best.”
Johansson defends team selection after cup exit
Motherwell’s preparations were affected by a Premier Sports Cup exit at Stenhousemuir. Johansson was criticised for his team selection but defended his decisions: “It was a team I believed at that moment was the best team to perform on Sunday. In all the games, I haven’t played the same IX twice. We have been rotating a lot. Many of the players who have done well have received a lot of praise for that, along with myself and the staff. So we accept the criticism after Sunday for not getting the result we wanted.”
