Fond memories of MK Dons will be put to the side by Oxford’s backroom

It will be just another game for Liam Manning, Chris Hogg and Lewis Price when MK Dons and Oxford United meet in the EFL Trophy tonight.

The trio helped lead Dons to third place in the 2021/22 season before being sacked last December with the club in the League One relegation zone.

Now in charge at the Kassam Stadium, Manning helping Oxford avoid the drop last term, at the expense of his former club, and was named League One’s Manager of the Month for August after making a flying start to the new campaign.

But with the Trophy clash setting up a meeting with their former club, U’s assistant manager Hogg said they will be treating tonight’s game as any other.

“It’s about being professional, and going in and doing your job, and trying to stay level on that sort of stuff,” he said in the Oxford Mail. “Naturally, people will look at it with the manager, myself and Pricey having been there previously.

“We’ve got some good memories and worked with some terrific players whilst we were there, but football being football, it is now about Oxford United and us turning up to do the job properly, and making sure we prepare the boys as best we can to go and perform to their best capabilities.

“It’s just another game of football. We’ll see a few faces that we know, but I’ve always said that once you move on, you appreciate the memories and have gratitude for some of the connections we’ve had fans at the time.”