Dons contract talks on hold during coronavirus pandemic

Players out of contract in a few months time at Stadium MK are having to patiently wait to discuss their futures until the coronavirus pandemic ends, says manager Russell Martin.

Several players face a race against time to sign new contracts before their run out this summer, while Martin also confirmed some players have signed extended contracts, though the details were never announced to the public.

But with the current lockdown, he said talks with players and agents about new deals being put forward were currently on hold.

He said:"We've had to put that on hold until we see the financial implications. Everyone accepts that's where we're at, and it's the same at all clubs. Some we'd like to keep, but we have to assess it as and when. But everyone is accepting of that.

"A lot of players signed new contracts before we took over, and the previous manager did not want to disclose that or announce that. But we have a lot of players who will still be here, but some others who are still playing for contracts."

Dons currently have three loan players in their squad - Carlton Morris and Louis Thompson from Norwich City, and Andrew Fisher from Blackburn Rovers - and their deals were due to expire soon too. However, Martin said he was confident Dons could keep the trio until the season.

He continued: "The EFL's stance is that it's up to the parent clubs if they want the deals to continue. Id like to think they would let us keep the players to finish the games, and I'm confident that would be the case. There's no legal obligation to keep them here, but I feel our relationship with the clubs we'd be able to keep them."

The manager too confirmed his contract, signed when he took over from Paul Tisdale in November, was a long term deal, not one which was set to expire at the end of the season.

"I signed a long term deal when I took over," he added. "It wasn't until Christmas, or the end of the season – people thought it was short term but it isn't. The chairman has given me a chairman that commits to me. I want to be here for at least the duration of this contract to get the club to where I think it should be. Hopefully I'm here for many years to come."