Gillingham interim boss Steve Lovell is under no illusions of the task that awaits him after his surprise return to Priestfield this week after Steve Evans’ departure…

“I’m looking forward to the challenge,” Lovell told KSN. “The club is where they are in the League for the results they’ve got this season, so it’s important we try and turn things around as quickly as possible and a get a bit of positivity into the club and make sure that we have a good go and get ready for Saturday against Burton and start with a good performance!”

Lovell returns to take temporary charge at Priestfield for a second time after playing 233 times for the club in the late eighties and early nineties – netting ninety-four times.

“I got a call on Monday morning from the Chairman,” he explained, “asking if I could go and see him and then meet the players at the training ground, and it all happened from there really.”

“It’s now “just” a matter of rolling our sleeves up and getting the players to roll their sleeves up and work towards putting on a performance come Saturday and getting some positivity around a Football Club like we are – not winning games becomes quite negative and the main things is to lift the players, lift everybody at the Football Club and give them the confidence to go out and play the way that they can.”

“I’m not going into this with any deadlines because I’ve been asked to come in and do a job that I love doing and one that I am very passionate about. I will give everything for the cause, and I think that’s what the Chairman needs now – someone to support him in the best way forward!”

Midfielder Alex MacDonald will assist Lovell whilst he recovers from injury. “He’s brilliant – he’s been fantastic,” he told us, “he knows the players – not so much what they can do on the field, but their mentality, the way that they approach things and there hasn’t been a negative response from anybody.”

“Hopefully, the squad that we’ve got, when its all fit, will be a decent squad – hopefully, we can add in the January window to strengthen it. I’ve got to have a look first to see where we need strengthening which will come before the end of the window and we may be able to get a couple in.”

There has been speculation that there will be departures from the club in January, but Lovell said, “I don’t want anyone to leave! I don’t want to lose any players from the squad because if we lose them, there are places to fill very, very quickly.”

“The players that are being talked about are quality players that we don’t want to leave, and we don’t want to lose. So, hopefully that won’t be the case and we can carry on, and that’s what I’m working towards, that theory that they’re going to be here working for me and the Football Club to try and get us up the League!”

“Every supporter has got their opinion about things,” Lovell went on, “and whilst the support that I’ve been getting is nice, it’s a matter of getting on with it, concentrating about the job in hand and being very positive around the place – I am a positive person – and hopefully that will rub off on everyone here, and make it a place where everyone will enjoy coming to work.”

“I don’t go on any social medias and keep myself to myself, and I will do is to concentrate on the job at hand. I am the same as the supporters standing out there – I see the game, I love the game, I love the Football Club like they do.”

“All I’m trying to do is the best for the Football Club and as long as I’m here now, that’s what I will do, and I’ve always done the past. I love being at the Football Club, I love being at the training ground and working with players, and I love when you get success – and you get that through hard work… and that’s what I will be trying to do, and whether it happens on Saturday – or maybe the following week – we will get there, we will make sure that it works and the performances will improve, and if the performances improve, results will improve and that’s the main thing!”