Soccer
Paul Warne admits MK Dons ‘have a few issues that need addressing’ after draw
Paul Warne admitted MK Dons’ clash with Wycombe “had everything except the three points we came for” after they were pegged back to 3-3 after a dramatic second-half comeback.
The Dons looked dead and buried at 2-0 down at half-time after the Chairboys had taken the lead with goals from Dan Casey and Ewan Henderson.
Warne’s shake-up at the interval, sending on Callum Paterson and Dan Crowley, heralded a fightback that saw his team take the lead with three goals in an eight-minute spell from Aaron Collins (51), Paterson (55) and Curtis Nelson (59).
But the home side rescued a point thanks to newly-signed striker Jayden Wareham, who grabbed a 74th-minute leveller on his debut.
Warne said: “I must give the lads massive credit. We went away from home, went 2-0 down then took something out of the game.
“The lads were booed off at half-time and they thoroughly deserved it in a local derby. They hadn’t defended set pieces, people hadn’t done their jobs and this needs addressing. We need to show the lads again the importance of it.
“We should have played with a bit more personality in the first half, then we made changes and I liked the way we played in the second half.
“But I’m not skipping back to my car full of joy because I’ve got it sussed, because we have a few issues we need addressing.”
Wycombe boss Michael Duff admitted he was “frustrated” by the result and added: “We went into panic mode and survival mode.
“We didn’t start passing the ball again until we were 3-2 down. During the first half we looked a balanced, structured team. For four fifths of the game we were the better team but we didn’t do enough to win it.”
Both sides are still without a league victory this season and Duff said: “Nobody’s going to give us that win. I think our players came out after half-time half-hoping to win 2-0. You can’t hope to win.
“It’s never going to happen in football. In only eight minutes we conceded three goals with individual errors all over the place. We can’t afford a soft edge to our mentality. We’ve conceded 12 goals in five league games now and that’s nowhere near good enough.”
Wareham signed from Exeter just before the transfer deadline, and Duff said: “He was exactly what we thought he’d be.
“His goal was a brilliant finish. He used his movement to stay out of the centre-back’s eye-line and wait until the cross came in.
“As soon as the cross arrived he darted across the front, but he had prepared his space. He’ll definitely add to what we’ve got.
“He’ll get better the more he plays alongside our players to build up a relationship.”
