SWINDON Town manager John Sheridan says he has not asked former Cobblers midfielder Christopher Missilou for any inside information on upcoming opponents Northampton Town.

Swindon welcome Northampton to the County Ground on Saturday in a League One relegation battle – a game that could prove significant for both teams. Northampton have not won any of their previous 10 league matches while Swindon have avoided defeat in three of their past five – winning two.

While Sheridan’s men could be considered the form team of the pair, defeat could see Swindon end Saturday evening back in the relegation zone and below managerless Northampton by a point.

But the Swindon boss says he won’t be asking the ex-Cobblers midfielder for any extra details on their opponents as he wouldn’t want to put Missilou under any pressure.

Sheridan said: “I haven’t asked Christopher anything. I wouldn’t put that pressure on him.

“I’ve watched enough of Northampton myself, so I’d like to think I know what they’re good at. I wouldn’t put Christopher on the spot like that.

“We’ve looked at them and hopefully we can deal with what they throw at us. They can be direct in the way they play, but they can also pass the ball around well enough.

“If they’ve watched us against Crewe they’ll think they can get at us and give us lots of problems. If they watched us against Lincoln, they’ll be very wary of us.”

Key to any potential success for Swindon will be the contribution of five-goal striker, Brett Pitman. When Pitman has scored this season, Town are undefeated in five separate matches (three wins, two draws).

Sheridan has been delighted with the all-around contribution of his 33-year-old forward since taking the hotseat at the County Ground, highlighting his game experience as a key factor in helping Town survive relegation.

He said: “He’s been a good player for us – the biggest thing is, he’s got experience. He knows the game, and I think he wants to go into the coaching side after he retires.

“If anyone says anything in the dressing room, Brett is usually one of them. His knowledge and experience of the game is good.

“He’s been at some good clubs – he’s had some promotions and he’s obviously scored goals.

“He’s going to be a big part – with his experience – to enable us to win games and hopefully get us out of the situation we’re in.

“We might have to look at him, where we’re playing Saturday-Tuesday a lot now, but hopefully he’ll continue playing well.”