Doncaster manager Grant McCann hit out at a lack of fighting spirit within the dressing room as his side slumped to a 2-0 League Two defeat at nine-man AFC Wimbledon.
An Ali Al Hamadi double condemned the visitors to their ninth defeat of the season as he poked the ball home on the stroke of half-time before firing into the top corner in the 63rd minute.
Rovers came into the game in fine form, having won three of their last four in the league but McCann admitted their performance at Plough Lane was a far cry from their recent output – citing his players’ mentality as key to their downfall.
“At half-time, I just felt the changing room was really quiet,” he said.
“The only one that was speaking was Tom Anderson and that’s when I knew, ‘have they got a comeback in them here’?
“We have got good boys in there, good characters and we’re at risk of sounding overly aggressive here.
“When you’re losing away from home, you need a wee bit of knowhow about you – you need people to stand up and grab one or two if they’re not doing it.
“We didn’t see that today. It’s almost like it was accepted that we never had a shot today. I don’t even think we had a shot to test the keeper.
“For me, that’s not good enough at all. The team didn’t play to the level we can do today.”
Dons manager Johnnie Jackson was comparatively chuffed with his side’s display, putting an end to their five-game winless streak in the league.
With victory taking them within touching distance of the play-off places, Jackson has insisted that his side – while aiming high – would not get carried away.
“The target is to try and keep winning games and keep progressing as far as we can in every cup,” Jackson said. “We want to win every game.
“But it’s important that you don’t panic in the moments where it isn’t going so well.
“You’ve seen how tight the league is. If you lose a game, you drop a few places.
“We just need to keep trying to put in performances, get what we deserve from those and stay in and around it.”
Despite the convincing result, the Dons would end the game with nine men, after Hus Biler and Omar Bugiel were both handed second yellow cards towards the tailend of the contest.
With Wimbledon staring down the barrel of a hectic festive period, Jackson emphasised the need to utilise the entirety of his squad.
“We’re at a time, when you get into the winter months, when you need everyone,” Jackson added.
“It’s been a good week for us because everyone’s played a part – whatever role, whatever competition.
“They’re ready to step up and obviously it’s an opportunity now for two more lads because we’re going to have two suspended.”
Milan derby defeat played part in nervy Udinese win, says Inter boss Inzaghi
Simone Inzaghi believes a hangover from Inter's derby defeat to Milan ultimately impacted his team's display against Udinese.
Lautaro Martinez scored twice as Inter held on for a nervy 3-2 win over Udinese on Saturday.
Davide Frattesi put Inter in front after 43 seconds but Christian Kabasele levelled in the 35th minute before Martinez scored either side of half-time, with Lorenzo Lucca setting up a grandstand finish.
The victory came six days on from reigning Serie A champions Inter losing 2-1 to their city rivals in dramatic fashion at San Serie.
"We came across a healthy team, who got 10 points and were undefeated at home," Inzaghi said.
"However, we always kept control of the match, it's a shame about the ending where you know there can always be a negative episode."
"The two goals are two goals that we should have avoided.
"Our opponents are very dangerous when they show up in the area. We should have done better as a team in both goals, Lucca flew towards our goal with a two-goal advantage, we will have to work better when not in possession.
"[But] it had been almost two years since we lost a derby and it had been two years since we prepared for a match with such difficulties because losing a derby is not like losing a normal match."
Inter did at least snap a run of three games without a win in all competitions, with Martinez grabbing his first Serie A goals since May in the process.
"In the derby he had a good game where he got used to exploiting the chances he had," Inzaghi said.
"[A scoring drought] happens, we were all waiting for his goals. The fact that he has returned to scoring is important for everyone."
Flick shoulders the blame after Barca's capitulation at Osasuna
Barcelona coach Hansi Flick took the blame following Saturday's shock 4-2 defeat at the hands of Osasuna.
Flick made a call to rest some of his key players and duly paid the price as Osasuna claimed their first LaLiga win over Barca since 2020.
The former Germany and Bayern Munich boss had been aiming to become only the second Barca coach, after Gerardo Martino, to win his first eight LaLiga matches in charge.
Yet Barca were firmly second best at Estadio El Sadar, with Bryan Zaragoza's double propelling Osasuna to a deserved victory, with the visitors only able to muster 0.68 expected goals (xG).
"You have to accept these defeats. We didn't play very well. I think it's my responsibility," Flick told Movistar Plus.
"[With the changes] I tried to protect the players, because they have been playing a lot of minutes. But I didn't expect us to play like this.
"We made a lot of mistakes and Osasuna did well. Although in the second goal I think there was a foul at the start of the action, I'm not entirely sure because I haven't been able to see it yet, but that's what I've heard.
"To score four goals against us is too much, but I've told the team that we have to keep going. It's a busy schedule and we are on the right track."
Flick was referring to a challenge by Osasuna midfielder Lucas Torro, who stood on Pau Victor's foot, in the build-up to Zaragoza scoring their second goal in the 28th minute.
The goal was given as neither the referee nor the VAR saw an infringement.
"For me it is a clear foul," a visibly frustrated Pedri told Movistar Plus.
Pedri also shrugged off the suggestion Flick's changes were the cause of Barca's issues.
He added: "It's normal to make rotations, there are a lot of matches. It's no excuse. We had to go out with 11 players and the score at half-time penalised us.
"The first half we were not good. We didn't come out to the game well. In the second half we deserved a bit more, but goals came when we were at our best.
"We had to go for the game. We had to go for everything and on the counter-attack they hurt us."
Inter Miami 1-1 Charlotte FC: Messi scores but Suarez miss proves costly
Lionel Messi scored but Inter Miami failed to puncture Charlotte FC's resolve as they were held to a 1-1 draw on Saturday.
Messi netted with a brilliant, low strike from the edge of the area to drag Miami level in the 67th minute at Chase Stadium.
His equaliser came 10 minutes after Karol Swiderski had diverted in Brandt Bronico's effort to give Dean Smith's Charlotte an unlikely lead.
Miami thought they had a penalty just after Messi's equaliser, but after consulting with the VAR, referee Ramy Touchan amended his decision to award a spot-kick for a foul on Diego Gomez, with that call also sparing Adilson Malanda from receiving a second yellow card.
Charlotte substitute Patrick Agyemang had a goal disallowed for offside as the frantic pace continued, though the best opportunity for a winner fell to Miami star Luis Suarez, only for the former Barcelona and Liverpool forward to slice over from point-blank range.
The draw leaves Miami needing to win all three of their remaining regular-season matches to break the single-season MLS points record of 73, which was set by the New England Revolution in 2021. Charlotte, meanwhile, are not sure of their place in the playoffs just yet.
Data Debrief: Miami's Messi problem?
Messi scored, had 10 shots, got five on target, had 15 touches in Charlotte's box, and created two chances for his team-mates, yet Miami could still not get over the line.
The issue for Gerardo Martino is, it is becoming a trend when the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner plays - and he will always play when he is fit, of course.
It can hardly be considered Messi's fault, but Miami have now won only one of the last six matches he has featured in dating back to late May (D3 L1). In the 13 matches Messi has missed in all competitions in that time, Miami have posted a record of W10 D0 L3, and it is a worrying drop-off heading into the playoffs.
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