The pressure’s off Gillingham in the Carabao Cup at Wolves and manager Neil Harris hopes his players take the chance to play with some freedom.

It’s been a tough slog in the league, heading into Christmas sitting bottom of the EFL, but cup football has brought the club some much-needed relief and the fourth round tie at Molineux tonight will be no different.

“I want the players to play with an element of freedom,” said Harris. “They can go out and enjoy the occasion and not overly worry about the opponent.

“We are playing against a Premier League team, we know they will be great technicians of the football, there will be some pace in the team and some ability, there has to be an element of going and expressing yourself, having that mentality, but when needed throwing your body on the line as well.

“We are bottom of the Football League at the moment, it is not a position we are proud to be in, we’re extremely unhappy about it and each game in the league comes with pressure at the moment because we feel we are under achieving, the further you go in the cup competitions the more the freedom you have.

“In the Carabao Cup we won at Wimbledon, beat Exeter from the league above, beat Brentford from the Premier League and now go to Wolves from the Premier League.

“In the FA Cup there was an air of expectation probably against Fylde, we didn’t want a banana skin, Dagenham was an even game, we understood and got through and the excitement for winning the replay is Leicester City at home in the third round, there is the revenue it generates for the football club but also an opportunity for my players to compete against another Premier League team, not so long ago winners of the league itself.

“With the cup element, there is some fun in it and some freedom to the games.”

Few would have given the Gills a chance at Brentford, just before the World Cup began. Ivan Toney’s third-minute goal could have been the start of a difficult night but Harris’ men hung in there and got a goal back through Mikael Mandron with 15 minutes left. Winning the shootout made it a memorable night.

“This is a bit like Brentford, we went there and enjoyed it,” Harris said. “Yes we are going to be under the pump.

“At Brentford we stayed in the game and found a moment of quality to take us to a penalty shootout and Wolves will be very similar, there is no pressure on us whatsoever.

“We have done unbelievably well in the cup competitions, playing Wolves away in the fourth round and Leicester at home in the third round (of the FA Cup), it is a bit of a miracle to be honest compared to the league form we have shown.

“We can go and enjoy it, the fans who go can go and enjoy it and if we get through, or get beat, we have had a great Carabao Cup run.”

Gillingham had a ticket allocation of 1,737 for the game so will be well backed again. It’s the last game before Christmas and a crucial game against second from bottom Colchester United on Boxing Day.

Harris said: “We’ll look forward to Wolves away with no expectation and have the enjoyment factor and then we have three league games in the space of eight or nine days and then we have another brilliant one against Leicester City live on TV, we just need a little bit of cheer in the league."