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David Artell has revealed he has brought in a sports psychologist in an effort to help reverse Crewe Alex’s fortunes.

Jo Maher has been working with Crewe’s players and staff in recent weeks after new boss Artell pinpointed one specific area he felt needed swift and significant improvement.

The Railwaymen had won just eight of their previous 51 league matches when long-serving manager Steve Davis lost his job last month.

But, after a four-game winless start to his reign, Artell has led Crewe on a mini-unbeaten run that stretched to three matches after they fought back to draw 2-2 at Blackpool last weekend.

The Railwaymen welcome Stevenage to Gresty Road on Saturday (3pm kick-off) aiming to pull further clear of the Football League drop spots.

And Artell, who has confirmed key defender Jon Guthrie is fit to face play-off-pushing Boro, said: “When I came into this job I was never, certainly in the shorter period, going to improve the players greatly technically as it takes a long time.

“Tactically we can certainly set them up to lose, but I’d like to think more often than not we get it right, while physically they’re not unfit.

“We’re finishing games stronger. The Blackpool assistant manager said to me, ‘you’ve got great energy in your team’, and that’s all credit to the players and sports scientist Jeff Lewis, and how we’ve improved training and the intensity of it.

“But the biggest area that had to be improved upon was in between the players’ ears.

“I’m not a psychologist but I have been in dressing rooms and I understand players.

“But, while I may understand how the principles of psychology can apply in some instances in the football domain, I don’t know the actual theory behind it. So let’s improve that.

“Jo has been with us for two of the last three games and a couple of the players have spoken to her and found it really beneficial.

“She’s excellent. She’s with us for the next few games in the hope that she helps me and all the rest of staff say the right things at the right time.

“We don’t want players with no confidence or their mindset impaired in anyway. We want players to feel as though they are Lionel Messi, or feel as though they are Barack Obama, or even Donald Trump, if they want to!

“By that I mean feel powerful and as though they can have a real impact.

“I like to think my staff and I have relationships with every player and, if they’re going to trust us, we need to know how to help them.

“It’s an educational vehicle for the staff but hopefully the players themselves can bypass us and go straight to Jo if that’s what they want to do.

“All in all I think it is a real help and I think it has helped.”

Guthrie, meanwhile, has been deemed ‘good to go’ after coming off at Blackpool and in the 5-0 home win over Grimsby Town with a niggling groin injury.

Artell said: “It’s something that we have to take into consideration when we’re planning and doing things day to day.

“But Jon is fine and he’s good to go again.”

Captain Danny Hollands will undergo a second scan in London this week after sustaining a severe hamstring injury in the 2-1 victory at home to Wycombe Wanderers.

But Crewe’s midfield options will be boosted on Saturday by the return of Billy Bingham who scored, along with Charlie Kirk, for the under-23s in a 2-1 triumph over Sheffield Wednesday on Monday.