Lee Bell saluted the resilience of his players as Crewe grabbed a stoppage-time winner following a lacklustre display in a 3-2 victory against Doncaster.
The high-flying Railwaymen played second fiddle to Grant McCann’s Rovers for long periods and were pegged back by Joe Ironside’s second-half header after having come from behind to lead at the break through goals from defenders Luke Offord and Connor O’Riordan.
Just as the visitors looked to have earned a point their strong second-half showing deserved, giant centre-half O’Riordan grabbed his second goal of the game when he fired in from close range.
“We showed tremendous resilience and we battled throughout the game,” said Bell. “I am always confident we can get something from games like that and the lads can come up with something. They work so hard and wins like that are so important to get when you’re not quite at your best.
“That was Luke’s first goal in the league this season, while in training I call Connor ‘Tore Andre Flo’ as he always scores goals. The main thing though is not who scored but that we got a win when the performance was below par.
“Doncaster are a very aggressive team and we didn’t spot at first that they were nullifying us man for man all over the pitch. But we overcame that and showed great resilience to get the win. We’re heading in the right direction and we’ve got to keep going if we want to do something this season.”
Crewe’s win was their fifth in their last six outings, but they fell behind early on when West Brom loan striker Mo Faal took Ironside’s pass and blasted a fierce low shot past keeper Harvey Davies.
Bell’s men levelled when Offord played a one-two with Aaron Rowe to surge clear in the box and drive an effort out of the reach of Jones (29). O’Riordan took his first from a difficult angle after taking advantage of a ricochet off a Rovers defender after Mickey Demetriou had delivered a long throw just before the break (44).
Ironside had Rovers back on terms after the interval (57) with a powerful glancing header, from James Maxwell’s cross, arrowing into the top corner as the visitors dominated much of the second half during which efforts from Ben Close and substitute Tommy Rowe almost secured the lead.
But Crewe had struck in stoppage time to win their last home game against rivals Notts County and they repeated the feat when Rio Adebisi crossed to the near post and O’Riordan evaded a defender to tuck home a close-range finish (90+2).
Doncaster boss Grant McCann admitted that while losing late on was a blow, he was delighted with his side’s performance.
“If we keep playing like that then we will get our just rewards. We just came off it a bit at the end and got punished. But we know that we’re a match for any team in this division,” said McCann.
“We have our moments away from home where things are not going our way. But I don’t think Crewe tested Louis Jones at all in the second half, but the one chance they had they scored from it.
“We had numerous opportunities and created so many chances in the second half that I thought we were going to win the game. But from what we were like down at AFC Wimbledon a fortnight ago, when we were powderpuff, that was chalk and cheese. I said to the boys after ‘if we are going to get beat that is the way to get beat’.”
Al-Nassr 1-2 Al-Qadsiah: Aubameyang winner ends hosts' unbeaten run
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang hit the winner as Al-Qadsiah inflicted a 2-1 defeat on Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League on Friday to end their 21-match unbeaten run.
Cristiano Ronaldo's seventh league goal of the season put Al-Nassr ahead, but Al-Qadsiah replied swiftly through Julian Quinones before Aubameyang struck the decisive blow.
The hosts drew first blood in the 32nd minute when Ronaldo slotted home after Al-Qadsiah goalkeeper Koen Casteels had spilled a routine catch from Talisca's cross.
However, Al-Nassr's joy was short-lived when Quinones brought down Turki Al Ammar's delivery five minutes later, with the Mexcio winger firing past Bento to level the scores.
Quinones also played a part in the winning goal after brilliantly turning the ball back across goal from Nahitan Nandez's search pass to tee up a simple finish for Aubameyang.
The result sees Al-Qadsiah move level on 22 points with third-placed Al-Nassr, with Al-Shabab also level with them.
Stefano Pioli's Al-Nassr are six points adrift of defending champions and leaders Al-Hilal, who also have a game in hand.
Arsenal handed another injury blow as White ruled out for 'months'
Mikel Arteta confirmed that Arsenal defender Ben White is facing "months" on the sidelines after sustaining a knee injury.
White had been dealing with several issues all season and has missed five games in all competitions for the Gunners already this term.
After struggling through until the November international break, the decision was taken for him to undergo surgery in order to finally address the ongoing problems.
It serves as a bitter blow for Arteta, with only Thomas Parety (13) making more interceptions than White (11) for Arsenal in the Premier League this campaign.
Though Arteta confirmed that the surgery was successful, White is set for a lengthy spell out of the team.
"It has been different kinds of struggles. It has never been the same thing, but we had to make a decision. He has not improved over the last few weeks, unfortunately," said Arteta.
"We know that Ben is going to push every boundary, but it got to the point where we have to protect the player and we decided to do the surgery.
"He agreed with that and it is going to keep him out for a few months."
Asked for a specific time frame, Arteta added: "We have to see how he reacts post-surgery. I don't expect it to be half a year, but I cannot tell you exactly."
It offers a concern for Arteta in the full-back area, with the Spaniard also revealing on Friday that Takehiro Tomiyasu is "going to be out as well for a bit".
There was, however, some positive injury news for the Gunners ahead of welcoming Nottingham Forest to the Emirates on Saturday.
After not featuring for England during the international break, Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice are expected to be fit to feature against Nuno Espirito Santo's side.
Leandro Trossard will also be available for Arteta despite picking up a hamstring injury during the international break with Belgium.
Defender Riccardo Calafiori is also in contention for Saturday's game after a month out with a knee problem.
Vlahovic out of Juventus clash with Milan
Dusan Vlahovic will miss Juventus' trip to Milan in Serie A this weekend and is also a doubt for the Champions League game at Aston Villa, head coach Thiago Motta has confirmed.
Vlahovic returned from the international break with a muscle problem in his left thigh, and the manager, after he confirmed the Serbian's absence for Saturday's game at San Siro, was asked about his chances of playing on Wednesday at Villa Park.
"I don't know. He definitely won't be there tomorrow. We hope to have him back as soon as possible," Motta told a press conference on Friday.
"Injuries are part of football. Now it's Vlahovic's turn, but we'll keep playing with the same principles, attacking and defending together."
Vlahovic is the latest of Motta's injury problems at Juventus. Argentine winger Nicolas Gonzalez missed the last six league games and is still unavailable, while Poland striker Arkadiusz Milik is a long-term absentee.
Brazilian midfielder Douglas Luiz will also miss the game with Milan and defender Juan Cabal recently suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury, the same issue which will keep fellow defender Gleison Bremer out for the rest of the season.
"I'm really disappointed for Cabal because, like Bremer, he'll be out for a long time," Motta said.
"This is another reason to push ourselves, to commit that bit more so that these absences don't weigh too heavily."
Juventus go into the game as the only unbeaten side in Serie A but find themselves sixth in the standings in what is so far a very tight title race, with just two points separating Motta's side from leaders Napoli.
"It's very balanced and this is good for both us and the public," Motta said.
"We must all try to continue like this. We have to try to get as many positive results as possible."
Milan are one place behind Juve but six points off Motta's side.
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