MK Dons boss Mike Williamson said his promotion-chasing side had shown real character to come from behind to win 2-1 away at Sky Bet League Two leaders Mansfield.
Dons were smarting from Saturday’s defeat by rivals AFC Wimbledon but bolstered their promotion hopes as Stags lost at home for only the second time this season.
“I thought it was a fantastic game between two good teams and you could see from the first whistle that both sides wanted to win,” said Williamson.
“I thought we showed every area of our character today and we played as much as we were allowed.
“We were under a lot of pressure as they are a really high-intensity, hard-working team. And we had to put bodies on the line as well.
“It was a good response from Saturday’s defeat and that is what these players are about and the chemistry they have in there.
“We had to play with a lot of courage and bravery today.
“Ultimately we had to respect who we are playing – they are top of the league for a reason. So I am proud of the boys tonight. They all put a real shift in.”
Mansfield went ahead after 15 minutes when MJ Williams’ handball gifted them a penalty.
Michael Kelly kept out Lucas Akins’ spot-kick and he then also saved the former Burton forward’s follow-up but could not stop Stephen Quinn burying the loose ball at the third time of asking.
However, five minutes later Lewis Brunt’s powerful header unluckily hit the onrushing Alex Gilbey who raced onto the gift and crashed home a fine 20-yard finish.
The winner came on 54 minutes through Matthew Dennis, who had cleared an Aden Flint header off the line and missed a six yard header in the first half.
He cut in from the left and saw his low finish take a deflection past Christy Pym.
Mansfield manager Nigel Clough said: “I don’t think we got a break tonight playing against an extremely good team – technically they are probably the best in the league.
“But I thought we were a bit unlucky with both goals tonight.
“For the first Lewis Brunt won a brilliant header and it just went straight to their lad off his thigh into his path and he’s put a great finish in.
“For the second Louis Reed’s had a shot from outside the box, it’s been blocked and gone in their lad’s path again and they have broken away and scored.
“There was bags of effort tonight but not a break. The lads gave absolutely everything.
“It took us three go’s to score from a penalty which probably summed up the night after scoring 14 goals here in the last couple of home games. We were maybe due one of these sorts of days.”
Girona boss Michel seeking consistency after poor start
Michel wants to see Girona turn in more performances of the level they showed against Rayo Vallecano in midweek, despite the fact they drew that game 0-0.
Winless in four consecutive games in all competitions, last season's surprise LaLiga challengers Girona dominated proceedings on Wednesday with 70% possession, accumulating 2.0 expected goals (xG).
Having gone toe-to-toe with giants Real Madrid and Barcelona for much of last campaign before eventually finishing third, Girona now sit 12th in the LaLiga standings on eight points from seven matches.
They face Celta Vigo on Sunday, and ahead of that match, Michel said: "We shouldn't compare ourselves to last year because we are a different team.
"I really liked the team against Rayo, and if we had that level and continuity before against Valencia (a 2-0 loss) and Barcelona (a 4-1 defeat), I would be very happy.
"Rayo didn't score against us, they were defending the whole game and that's not easy to achieve. I'm convinced that we need to give continuity to the idea we had the other day, only then will we be close to winning more games."
Girona sold LaLiga's top scorer from last season, Artem Dovbyk, to Roma over the summer, but Michel is not concerned by a lack of goalscoring prowess from his side.
"We have the capacity to finish more plays and we have to find the timing to do it now. This is our concern and the training sessions are going in that direction," he added.
The Spaniard was full of praise for Celta, who are 10th in LaLiga with one more point than Girona.
"They have started the league well," Michel said. "They are the best team in terms of ball circulation, and they do things very well.
"They are a team that hurts you with the ball and that's why we have to impose our game, make good possessions and arrive well in the opponent's half and in the opponent's goal."
Rodgers salutes Celtic's 'Champions League mentality' in St. Johnstone rout
Brendan Rodgers paid tribute to Celtic's "Champions League mentality" in their 6-0 rout of St. Johnstone at McDiarmid Park.
Kyogo Furuhashi scored twice, while Paulo Bernardo, Callum McGregor, Daizen Maeda and Adam Idah were also on target for the Hoops, who warmed up for their midweek European trip to Borussia Dortmund in emphatic fashion.
The dominant victory moved Celtic back to the top of the Scottish Premiership table - ahead of Aberdeen on goal difference - as they continued their perfect start to the season, with a sixth win in as many games.
And Rodgers was pleased by the character his players demonstrated.
"I thought this was an opportunity to show our mentality," he told Premier Sports. "All the noise has been about Dortmund, but I wanted a Champions League mentality here, and I thought the boys controlled the game.
"We wanted to keep our rhythm going. You see some of the guys coming in this evening, like Valle coming in at left-back, showing his composure.
"Most were looking at it as a tick-box before Dortmund, but for me, it was to show their mentality. Everyone will be flying on Tuesday night, but I want to see how they do when they’re here, or other grounds. It’s a case of just focusing in on that.
"I thought the variety of our game was very good; everything you'd want from your team."
Looking ahead to Tuesday's clash with Bundesliga giants Dortmund, he added: "[They] are a good team with top players, so we can't get away from that.
"OK, they've lost one or two [players] from last year, but I always say we make sure we press, make sure we attack. It's a tough game, but we'll look forward to it."
Osasuna 4-2 Barcelona: Budimir brace condemns LaLiga leaders to first defeat
Barcelona suffered their first LaLiga defeat of the season after going down 4-2 against Osasuna at Estadio El Sadar.
Ante Budimir scored twice, while Bryan Zaragoza and substitute Abel Bretones were also on target for the hosts, who claimed their first league win over the Blaugrana in nine attempts.
Osasuna were unbeaten in their six previous home league games and took an 18th-minute lead when Budimir nodded home from Zaragoza's cross.
The latter, who is on loan from Bayern Munich, doubled the advantage 10 minutes later when he rounded off a swift counter.
Pau Victor halved the deficit eight minutes after the restart, but Budimir's 72nd-minute penalty put the hosts back in control, before Bretones made it 4-1 with seven minutes remaining.
Lamine Yamal climbed off the bench to reduce Barca's arrears, but it was a consolation for Hansi Flick's side, who dropped their first points this term.
Data Debrief: Flick misses out on matching Martino
Flick was aiming to become only the second Barca manager after Gerardo Martino in 2013-14 to oversee eight straight victories at the start of a LaLiga season.
However, he and the visitors were denied by their inspired hosts, who have now recorded four successive home league wins for the first time since September 2011.
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