"It feels like yesterday": Grigg fondly remembers his breakout Dons moment against Manchester United

It has been more than ten years since Will Grigg made his first big impression at MK Dons, but it still feels like yesterday to the striker.

Grigg, on loan from Brentford back in 2014, scored on his debut against Gillingham, but it was his double against Manchester United in the historic 4-0 win at Stadium MK which really put him on the map for Dons supporters.

After firing Dons into the lead midway through the first-half, Grigg would score one of the most innovative and unique goals in the club’s history, chesting Ben Reeves’ cross past David De Gea just past the hour to make it 2-0. Two more goals from Benik Afobe, who replaced Grigg, would go on to complete the rout.

To this day, the game remains one of the most memorable in Grigg’s career, with the striker saying: “I can’t believe that game against Manchester United was 10 years ago – it feels like yesterday!”

Grigg was answering questions from the Citizen in an interview with SkyBet

He continued: “If I look back through my career, there’s a few games that stand out – and that was one of them. I felt like because I was a young player, it was just another game for me. It wasn’t until the full-time whistle went that it sank in, and we realised what we had just done. It was so special to see Stadium MK sold out, and to score two goals against United was an incredible feeling.”

He continued: “I haven’t scored a goal with my chest like that since! I think I’ve scored three with my chest, one at Chesterfield last year where I powered it past the goalkeeper from a cross from two yards out. The one against Manchester United was such an instinctive finish – I wasn’t thinking about too much, the ball from Ben Reeves was perfect and the way my body positioning was, my confidence was sky high, and it seemed like the right thing to do, and David de Gea at full stretch couldn’t get there.”

“I absolutely loved MK Dons”

Finishing with 22 goals and promotion to the Championship that season, Grigg would not be back for the following season as he returned to Brentford to be sold to Wigan Athletic. The striker though would return for two more spells at Stadium MK, where he went on to break a record for the most goals in a game - four against Swindon Town - before suffering relegation with the side in 2023.

Despite his time at the club ending on a sour note, he said the club is still a special place for him.

“It’s no secret that I absolutely loved MK Dons,” he said. “The owners were brilliant, the fans were brilliant, and it was full of good people – that was the reason I went back three times. I loved my football there, so when I had the option to go back, I did – that's why I went there three times!

“Whenever I stepped onto the training ground or the stadium, I just had a good feeling, which is credit to the people there and culture and environment they created.”