Dalla Valle hoping that hard work will pay off in the remaining five games

Lauri Dalla Valle is hoping he will continue to retain his place in Steve Davis’ starting XI between now and the end of the season. The bubbly Finn has had to wait patiently for his chance after re-signing for Crewe on a permanent contract in December, but he scored his first goal of the season to set us on the way to a famous victory at Sheffield United. He has worked hard over the Easter period and was unfortunate to see an acrobatic effort at Chesterfield on Monday just clear the far post.

The former Liverpool and Fulham man is hopeful that his recent performances will see him keep his place for the visit of Leyton Orient this weekend and then for the remaining four games.

Ahead of this weekend’s clash with Leyton Orient at Gresty Road, Lauri told the club’s official web-site: “As a forward you tend to think about goals and when the next one is going to come but I think the main thing is just to work hard all of the time and don’t change the things that you are doing well, but maybe put a bit extra in to help you get back to scoring ways.

“That’s what it’s all about and hopefully I can contribute into that by scoring goals, but the main thing is for the team to stay in this division because the team and the quality of players we have are all capable of that.

“Everyone is eager to do very well in the next few matches and to stay above that safety line so that we are sure about staying up in this league sooner rather than later.

Lauri added: “The last few games are all going to be massive, but you especially want to win against teams fighting for relegation because it also takes more points away from them, so it’s going to be a very good battle with both teams eager to get the win.”