Nigel Clough felt Mansfield were mentally sloppy during their hard-fought 3-2 win over Swindon and warned his players they cannot afford to let errors creep in at this stage of the season.
Looking to bounce back from their 2-1 midweek defeat to MK Dons, Mansfield were quickly out of the blocks and took a fourth-minute lead through Lucas Akins as well as going close through Hiram Boateng, Davis Keillor-Dunn and Akins, who clipped the post.
But the League Two leaders could not add to their lead and were pegged back to 2-2 by the hour mark so Swindon duo Paul Glatzel and Aaron Drinan struck either side of a Keillor-Dunn goal.
Mansfield were not level for long though, Will Swan netting soon after coming on as a 65th minute substitute to make it 3-2, and the home side held on to remain three points clear at the top of the table.
However, Clough knows his side should have made things much more comfortable for themselves at One Call Stadium.
He said: “We made hard work of it.
“We should have got more goals in the opening 10-15 minutes. That was a good opportunity for us, they have some very dangerous players as we saw who can hurt you.
“We were sloppy today, mentally more than anything, after three games in a week.
“We got the early goal and should have gone again. The chances were there in that first period. We could have put the game to bed, there are no mistakes at this stage of the season.
“Davis (Keillor-Dunn) should be doing more with the situations he got into today to get the second goal.
“I know he has got 18 goals but he is getting the ball in the right areas and he is choosing the wrong option.
“He is not doing what he did for the second goal. He dropped his shoulder and it was a wonderful finish. He has been in that position six or seven times today and that is the only time he tried it, I don’t understand why he is laying it off.”
Swindon’s interim head coach Gavin Gunning was frustrated by his side’s slow start as the Robins slumped to a 15th defeat of the season.
“It is a frustrating result,” he said. “There are so many positives, but a defeat is a defeat.
“When you concede goals that are a horror show like that it is a frustrating afternoon.
“We were chasing things after the opening five minutes. Once we grew into the game it was much of a muchness.
“Swan was unmarked for their winner, that is just having the desire to get close and have contact with him in the box. We work on that all week and getting tight to players.
“The first five/10 minutes we were all over the place and then we grew into it and had our moments.
“It is frustrating. It is tough to get the words out, we went toe-to-toe with one of the best teams in the league, but we conceded some horror show goals.
“We score and then switch off. We didn’t mark in the box and we conceded, it’s simple.”
Al-Ahli 1-2 Al-Hilal: Mitrovic double keeps Saudi champions perfect
Aleksandar Mitrovic proved to be the difference once again for Al-Hilal as the reigning Saudi Pro League champions beat Al-Ahli 2-1 on Saturday.
Al-Ahil went in front with 12 minutes played when Gabri Veiga was sent through on goal by Franck Kessie, with the Spaniard rounding Yassine Bounou to open the scoring at King Abdullah Sports City.
The hosts went close to doubling their advantage soon after, with Riyad Mahrez and Ivan Toney going close, before Sergej Milinkovic-Savic saw his effort cleared off the line at the other end.
But parity was restored early in the second half through Al-Hilal's master marksman, as Mitrovic nodded home a trademark header from Renan Lodi's delivery.
Al-Ahil were then awarded a penalty when Rayan Hamed fouled Malcom inside the box, only for Mitrovic to see his effort saved by Abdulrahman Al Sanbi.
However, the Serbian was given the chance to redeem himself after the VAR deemed encroachment had taken place, and he made no mistake at the second time of asking to net his 14th goal of the season in all competitions.
Data Debrief: Mitrovic the main man
Mitrovic has been in fine form since his move to Saudi Arabia, with his latest double taking his tally to 54 goals in as many appearances for Al-Hilal.
This time out, he contributed 1.16 expected goals (xG) tally to the visitors' 2.24 total, while also recording the most touches in the opposition box (six).
Malcom also impressed for Al-Hilal, creating more chances (three) than anyone on the pitch, with his 14 passes into the final third a total only bettered by Ruben Neves (18) and Salem Al Dawsari (15) among his team-mates.
Al-Nassr 3-0 Al-Orubah: Mane double helps hosts close in on leaders
Sadio Mane scored a goal in either half, helping Al-Nassr cruise to a 3-0 win over Al-Orubah and close in on the top two in the Saudi Pro League.
Cristiano Ronaldo had given the hosts the lead from the spot, setting them on their way to a dominant victory.
After a slow start, Jean Seri was penalised for a handball, and Ronaldo made no mistake from the spot. After a stuttering run-up, he coolly slotted his strike into the bottom-left corner.
Mane got his first on the stroke of half-time, latching onto Ronaldo's pull-back before firing his low shot into the far side of the net.
He could have had a hat-trick, having also hit the woodwork and squandered a first-time shot by slicing it wide, but he did get his second in the 71st minute, guiding Nawaf Bu Washi's cross past Gaetan Coucke.
Cristian Tello came closest to a consolation for the visitors, smashing a long-range effort off the crossbar.
Data Debrief: Mane's time to shine
Mane, so far this season, has been providing the spark as a playmaker after registering five assists in Al-Nassr's first five games in the Saudi Pro League.
Today, however, he regained his scoring touch, getting his first two goals of the campaign.
He had the most shots (five), and shots on target (three), as he accumulated 0.97 expected goals (xG), while his seven touches in the box was the most of any player on the field.
Napoli 3-1 Como: Lukaku and McTominay on target to extend hosts' Serie A lead
Romelu Lukaku continued his fine start to life at Napoli as the Belgian notched a goal and two assists in his side's 3-1 win over Como on Friday.
The hosts found themselves ahead with just 26 seconds on the clock when Scott McTominay was picked out by Lukaku, with the Scotland international firing home his first goal for Gli Azzurri off the post.
But Como would draw themselves level two minutes before the break when Gabriel Strefezza's strike from distance rifled into the bottom corner.
However, Antonio Conte's side needed just eight minutes after the interval to restore their advantage when Sergi Roberto brought down Mathias Olivera in the box, with Lukaku stepping up from 12 yards to net his fourth Serie A goal of the season.
Napoli continued to push for a third goal to secure the victory, with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia going closest but saw his effort saved by Emil Audero.
But the points were sealed in the 86th minute when Lukaku turned provider once again, holding off his marker before slipping through substitute David Neres who slotted home with a fine finish to extend Napoli's lead at the top of the standings to four points.
Data Debrief: Lukaku continues Conte love story
Lukaku has been a player reborn under Conte's stewardship. The Belgian is the player who has been involved in the most goals in his first five appearances for Napoli in Serie A since the Italian top-flight returned to 20 teams (since 2004/05) with three goals and four assists.
He has also managed to better his assist tally for the whole of last season, managing just three in 32 appearances for Roma last term.
McTominay's goal after 26 seconds is the third-fastest scored by Napoli since the start of a Serie A match in the three points for a win era, after Hirving Lozano's goal against Hellas Verona in 2021 (nine seconds) and Ezequiel Lavezzi's goal against Genoa in 2008 (25 seconds).
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