Leyton Orient first-team coach Matt Harrold felt his team were excellent throughout as they came back from a goal down at half-time to win 2-1 at Oxford and give their play-off hopes a big boost.
Tyler Goodrham gave Oxford a 20th-minute lead but the O’s hit back through Ollie O’Neill and George Moncur.
Boss Richie Wellens was sent to the stands for the third time this season, on this occasion for timewasting when making a substitution, so Harrold was again put forward after the match to speak to the press.
And Harrold said: “I thought we played really well.
“I felt they had a goal against the run of play really – we switched off and allowed a runner and they played around us with a little bit of quality.
“But apart from that, I thought we were good in the first half.
“Then we said a few things at half-time and we went from strength to strength and deserved the win.
“We worked on something in the week which came off a few times in the first half and at half-time we urged them to shoot through bodies.
“And that’s what Ollie O’Neill did and it was a great strike into the far corner. It was just that little moment that we were maybe lacking in the first half.
“It was a great goal and with Moncs, we’d said to him at half-time to take more chances – and that’s what happens when he does. He does it all the time in training and it was an unbelievable finish.
“We all know Moncs can do it, we just want to see it more often.
“It just shows what he can do. He’s fresh, he’s hungry and I think he looks really confident. We all believe in him so much – he’s done it, with a great goal and it was a great moment for us.
“I’ve got to be honest, I thought the red card for Richie seemed a little harsh because we were just trying to make a substitution which we’d made clear we wanted to do and I thought a lot of our yellow cards were harsh too.
“The gaffer’s disappointed – it doesn’t look great, obviously, but I thought that one was a harsh one.”
Oxford boss Des Buckingham admitted his team’s performance was not good enough.
He said: “I’m disappointed with the performance because we didn’t deserve to win the game.
“But we’re still sixth in the table and we’ve got 11 more opportunities to make sure we stay where we want to stay.
“We’ve only got the one point from these last two home games which is not what we wanted.
“The first goal they scored we had four different chances to clear the ball and we didn’t. And the second one, we allowed a guy who’s right-footed onto his right foot to shoot.
“But we’ll deal with this together. It’s not about looking for excuses or blame. That’s not where you take a group of people where you want to go.
“Yes, it’s about accountability and making sure across the group we’re all clear about what we’re doing.
“It’s still a work in progress, it was never going to happen overnight.
“It’s something we will work on hard throughout the rest of the season and make sure we get right.
“We have to find that combination and we will find that combination.
“We have a free week before the Portsmouth game and it’s important we use these four days on the training ground to get back on track to get as many points as we can from the last 11 games.
“We need to get a run of results together to get people here behind us more often.”
Martino resigns as Inter Miami coach after early playoff exit
Gerardo Martino has resigned as Inter Miami's head coach due to personal reasons, the MLS side have confirmed.
The Argentine ends his 17-month stint in charge of the Herons following their MLS Cup exit just under a fortnight ago.
Martino, who oversaw Miami's Leagues Cup triumph soon after his arrival last season, guided the franchise to this year's Supporters' Shield with a regular-season record tally of 74 points.
However, they were eliminated by his former side Atlanta United in round one of the MLS Cup playoffs.
Miami opened their best-of-three series against Atlanta with a 2-1 win, only to lose by the same scoreline in Game 2 before falling to a dramatic 3-2 defeat in the decider.
“It has been an honour to work at such a special club, and to lead such a special team," Martino said.
"I’ve enjoyed my stay at Inter Miami and will treasure the memories made and relationships forged here for the rest of my life.
"I depart with nothing but gratitude for my time here and would like to offer sincere thanks to everyone that made it possible."
Fonseca: Milan have 'respect' but 'are not afraid' of Juventus
Paulo Fonseca said Milan have plenty of "respect" for Juventus, but his side "are not afraid" of their rivals ahead of their Serie A clash on Saturday.
After a slow start to the season, Milan are six points adrift of Juventus in the table, but only a place behind them, as they aim to make up the ground on the top six.
The Rossoneri have played a game less than Thiago Motta's side, and could catapult themselves back into the Scudetto picture with a win this weekend.
Milan return to the San Siro for the first time since a 2-0 defeat to Napoli at the end of October, and could register two consecutive home defeats in Serie A for the first time since between October and November in 2023.
"It is not decisive, but it is important, like all of them," Fonseca told reporters ahead of Saturday's game.
"I can't say that the game against Juve is more important than the next one against Empoli because we need consecutive victories.
"It's a different game, but I always think positively. We are Milan, we have a lot of respect for the 'Bianconeri', but we are not afraid. We are here ready to win."
A boost for Milan is that Juventus will be without top scorer Dusan Vlahovic for Saturday's clash after returning from international duty with a muscle problem.
Despite the Serbian's absence, Fonseca was aware of the danger his probable replacement, Timothy Weah, would pose, having managed him during his time at Lille.
"Juve knows how to adapt very well. I don't know if Weah will play," Fonseca said.
"Weah is very fast and attacks deep, not like Vlahovic. It will not be the same thing of course.
"We will have to pay attention to movements in depth and less to support work, because he is a player who does less of this job."
While Fonseca has endured a stuttering start to his tenure at the San Siro, Milan have shown they have the ability to match the very best.
They beat rivals Inter in October before stunning Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in their last Champions League encounter, keeping their play-off hopes alive.
"I believe it's a matter of motivation and not pressure," Fonseca said.
"Against Inter, Juve and Real it is easy to be motivated, it's more difficult to go to Cagliari and have the same motivation.
"Pressure is always with us, every day. If we don't want to have pressure, then we shouldn't be here."
'Right guy at the right time' - Amorim confident of changing Man Utd's fortunes
Ruben Amorim believes he is the "right guy at the right time" to turn Manchester United's fortunes around.
The 39-year-old signed a two-and-a-half-year deal earlier this month to keep him at Old Trafford until June 2027, replacing Erik ten Hag after he was sacked in October.
Amorim is the sixth permanent United manager since Alex Ferguson retired in 2013, having left Sporting CP to take charge during the international break.
He won two Primeira Liga titles as Sporting head coach as well as two Taca da Liga trophies, while he led the club to a perfect start in the league this season, winning all 11 of their games.
United sit 13th in the Premier League table ahead of their trip to Ipswich Town on 15 points, though they are just four points behind Chelsea in third.
Amorim recognised the size of the task ahead of him in Manchester but is confident he can make a change.
"I'm a little bit of a dreamer and I believe in myself, and I believe in the club," he said during his first press conference.
"I think we have the same idea, the same mindset and that can help.
"I truly believe in the players; I know you don't believe a lot, but I do. I want to try new things. You guys don't think it's possible, I do.
"Call me naive, but I believe I am the right guy at the right time. I truly believe I am the right guy."
Aged 39 years and 302 days, Amorim will be the youngest to take charge of his first match for the Red Devils since Wilf McGuinness in August 1969 (31y 288d).
United have won just four of their 11 league games so far this season, and have struggled in front of goal, netting just 12 times so far.
Expected to implement his favoured 3-4-3 formation, Amorim admitted it would take time for the club to adapt and has asked for patience as the players get used to his tactics.
"I know at Manchester United we have to win games. We need a lot of time because it's a tough league, we have to improve a lot to try to win the title," he added.
"We have to change the physical aspect of the team. I don't know how long it will take."
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