Manning: Wins don’t always have to be pretty
MK DONS manager Liam Manning was pleased to see his team grind out a gritty victory rather than play pretty football and lose against Burton Albion.
“It’s almost football snobbery – we talk about how it looks,” said Manning.
“Could we have played better, or had more control, used the ball better, been braver or taken more care?
“One hundred per cent but, bigger picture, we hadn’t kept a clean sheet for a while and we maintained control out of possession, not conceding a shot on goal.
“It’s finding the right balance, and playing a certain way to win a game.
“It will not always look like that. The opposition came here to stop that, to nullify that, it’s then about making sure you don’t lose. Credit to the guys, they really dug deep.
“For such a young group, it’s another new experience we can tick off. Learning to win matches is as important as learning to play a certain way.
“Having moments like this throughout the season will be important all season.”
Max Watters scored vthe only goal after 64 minutes but missed chances as well.
“I think we could have been 3-0 up at half-time,” said Manning.
“We created four or five really good chances. Max had a few which last week he took and this week he didn’t.
“But, typical of Max, he carried on and took one later. He didn’t let it faze him.
“It was a really difficult game in terms of the way they set up.
“We’d prefer to improve our style and get better at controlling games when we win than we would to play terrifically, dominate, look fantastic but lose.”