Martin felt Fraser deal was dead in the water

Russell Martin admitted he thought Scott Fraser had slipped through his fingers when he was trying to sign him earlier this summer.

After leaving Burton Albion at the end of last season, Fraser was in talks with several clubs before choosing to sign for Dons.

He has since scored five goals in 17 outings for Martin's side, including the winner in a sensational performance away at Charlton Athletic on Wednesday night.

But during the negotiation process, Martin said he felt Fraser was going to move elsewhere and that the deal was dead in the water.

"I thought he was gone," he said. "I didn't think he was going to sign for us but luckily for us he really liked what we're doing and enjoys the way we play. He's helping us to improve, and he still has a lot of improvements he can make. He knows that, he knows where I think he can improve and most importantly, he agrees. He plays with so much confidence and desire to improve.

"He has come here to get to a higher level, whether he does that with us or he does enough to make himself attractive to other teams. We need to keep him with us and he keeps improving.

"You run out of superlatives with Scotty. He's a fantastic footballer. He gets kicked a lot, he gets targetted a lot but he's gifted."