Gareth Ainsworth will be at Gillingham’s game this weekend against Bristol Rovers as he takes a big step forward in his recovery from heart surgery

Gillingham manager Gareth Ainsworth has confirmed he’ll be at the game this Saturday - but doctor’s orders mean he won’t be on the touchline yet.

Ainsworth is recovering from open heart surgery, which he had a month ago. He returned to the club this week, overseeing training ahead of the weekend trip to Bristol Rovers.

The Gills boss is buzzing to have returned but admits it’s going to take some time to be back at full throttle.

“I've got to take it easy still,” admitted the Gills boss.

“Unfortunately, I'm not going to be able to be in the dugout for a few games, but I’m back at the ground and back at the training ground, which has been important for me.

“It's been hell watching from home. It's been quite frustrating, but [assistant manager] Dobbo and the staff, I can't thank them enough for stepping up and taking it all on in my absence.

“I know people look at things and say, ‘Oh, it's not gone great, it probably would have gone the same under me.”

The Gills haven’t won a game since Ainsworth went off for his planned operation, but the manager said: “I was doing plenty of team selection, behind-the-scenes tactics, and sometimes it goes like that.

“I'm really pleased to be back in and on the training pitch for the last two days.

“[I’ll be] absent from the dugout, for obvious reasons, I'm not going to be able to be as animated as usual – there's a danger of a ball hitting or getting run into or something like that - while I just fully repair.

“I'll be in the stadiums and I'll be doing all the team-talks and things like that. I’m just really pleased to be back.

“I’m all fixed and ready to go now. I've just got to take it a little bit slower than usual, but I'll be fine.”

Ainsworth will be watching the next few games from