Walsall midfielder Danny Guthrie has seen enough positives to suggest that the Saddlers fortunes will change sooner rather than later.
The midfielder has been involved in Walsall’s last two matches after returning from an injury that has kept him out since the opening day of the season.
The 32-year-old believes that a bit of good luck could be a catalyst, particularly the forwards but feels the Saddlers aren’t too far away.
“We’ve got a lot of positives to take from the games,” he said.
“We just need to keep believing in what we’re doing, we know we’re not far away but we have to stop saying that and start producing.
“We’ve got a really hard-working team, have a really good shape about us and we’re working hard on the other side of the game every day.
“It’ll take something like a deflection or a ball hitting Josh Gordon in the face and going in, just something like that to get them two going up there.
“It’s just that side of the game that we’re missing from being a really good team.”
Walsall have found goals hard to come by so far this season but have been reasonably solid defensively, barring a couple of blips.
As one of the experienced players in the squad, Guthrie has been in teams that have both struggled to score and conceded a lot of goals and he’s keen to help guide the younger players in the squad through it.
“We’ve got a real good mix of players in the dressing room,” he commented. “We started off really young and we’ve got experienced players to mix it and it’s up to us to help the young lads who haven’t been in this position.
“You just keep doing the things that you believe in. I’ve played in teams that have struggled to score and I’ve played in teams that have struggled to stop them going in and I think I’d prefer to play in a team that struggles to score because if you’re shipping loads of goals then I think you’re in trouble.
“Every day we just keep working and try little things to be a bit more creative. We need to give the strikers better service, we can’t just rely on set pieces, we need to score from open play.”
The midfielder will be hoping to make his first league start since the opening day victory at Northampton.
The Saddlers won 1-0 that day and Guthrie believes the team have proved they’ve got the right tools to pick up results away from home.
“We’ve got the right mentality in the group to go away from home and do what we did at Northampton,” Guthrie said.
“We’ve got a real energy and lads that work hard and don’t mind grinding out results.
“We’ve got capability of going anywhere and keeping clean sheets and if you can keep clean sheets away from home then you’re going to pick up points.
“The first game was lovely with a win and a clean sheet away from home. I picked up a little injury but I was only actually out for two weeks but because there was so many games it felt like forever. I’ve got involved in the last couple of games and I’m now in a position to get back in the fold.”