Jose Riga will be in charge for his first away game on Saturday, and what a baptism of fire it is, as the team makes the short journey to neighbours Millwall.

Much has been made in some quarters about Riga not having signed a contract but there is nothing sinister about it. Katrien Meire has been sorting out the details of Chris Powell’s severance, so Riga’s contract has yet to be finalised.

Riga is well acquainted with owner, Roland Duchatelet, of course and is happy with the arrangement.

The new head coach has much experience of working with youngsters and some feel that he may be earmarked for the leading role in Charlton’s academy.

Duchatelet is keen for the Addicks to ultimately acquire Category One status so there could be a job for Viga there. Current academy director, Paul Hart, is a renowned name in developing young talent and there is no suggestion that Hart is about to leave.

His family home is still in the Nottingham area and he has never made a secret of the fact that he does not intend to work in the south forever.

Viga could also fulfil the Director of Football role as Charlton move over to a European management set up. He is a talented technical coach who can do several jobs, so he is a valuable member of Duchatelet’s staff.

For now his job is to keep Charlton in the Championship and Meire and her team are working hard behind the scenes to bring fresh bllod into the club. Viga likes to play an up tempo game and loves pacy players. A genuine goal scorer would also aid his cause.

The Addicks have a truly awful record against the Lions, winning just eleven times in the history of the fixture, the last time being 18 years ago.

Both sides are locked in the relegation battle and victory on Saturday would give one of the duo a huge psychological boost for the weeks ahead.

Millwall have injury concerns ahead of the game, particularly in the striking department. Jermaine Easter and DJ Campbell are definitely ruled out and Steve Morison is a doubt.

Ian Holloway has recalled Jon Vanquis from a loan spell at Northampton and has also given a trial to giant former Ausrian international, Stefan Maierhofer. The 6’8″ frontman was released by Cologne in the summer and has been unable to find a club. It is unclear whether the Lions will offer Maierhofer a deal and whether he would get international clearance in time to play this weekend.

Influential defender, Danny Shittu, is a doubt and another former Addick, Nicky Bailey, will also miss the game.

Powell would probably have tried to grind out a draw but Viga is likely to adopt a more adventurous approach. His 4-2-3-1 formation against Huddersfield often resembled an old fashioned 4-2-4 shape.

The 56-year-old Belgian does not believe in the long ball game and could be seen encouraging his players to keep the ball on the floor on Wednesday.

The games are coming thick and fast with little recovery time available. Sharpness will play a part in deciding the outcome of the match and Viga will be influenced by the medical team’s assessment of the players. He may want to play an unchanged team so the Addicks could go with this line-up, warranted there are no new arrivals before the game:

Hamer; Wilson, Morrison, Dervite, Wiggins; Ajdarevic, Poyet, Jackson, Harriott; Sordell, Ghoochannejhad.

Subs:Thuram-Ulien, Nego, Wood, Cousins, Green, Hughes, Church.

Top referee, Phil Dowd, will take charge of what is likely to be a feisty affair.

Both sides will be desperate for the three points but with the fresh impetus of a new man in charge, and Millwall’s injury problems, Charlton will probably feel they have their best chance of beating their local rivals for some time.