MK Dons in 2021: The bad and the ugly

In a year with plenty of ups and downs at MK Dons, here are a few of the things we enjoyed about 2021, and a few of the things we’d rather forget when we look back.

We continue with...

The Bad

Scott Fraser vs Russell Martin

A build-up of issues between the pair resulted in a bizarre situation at Stadium MK during the 1-0 win over Doncaster Rovers back in March. Fraser, reacting angrily to instructions from the sidelines, gave an expletive response and it saw him hauled off after just 28 minutes, launching his water bottle across an empty stand behind the dugout. Though the ‘air was cleared’ before the Crewe game next up, Dons turned in a lacklustre performance without Fraser on the pitch. If anything, it proved how reliant Dons had become on the Scot. Though they made up, Fraser was sold to Ipswich in the summer.

Lincoln away/Wigan away - no plan B

For all the style of play helped Dons go from a relegation scrapper to a midtable contender, when it went wrong, it went really wrong. The games away at Wigan and Lincoln in particular last season ended in humiliation with the full-time whistle only ending the torture! Russell Martin did not take kindly to being asked about a ‘plan B’ or an alternative when things went south, but rigidly trusting the process at all costs did not always work.

Covid

Empty stadia, lifeless games rubbish atmospheres - that was football for the first half of 2021. With the virus once again taking a stranglehold on the country, the last thing anyone wants is to go back to behind-closed-doors games.

Matthew Sorinola’s departure

His breakout season was nothing short of brilliant. Sorinola burst onto the scene (even as a wing-back) and made a huge impression at Stadium MK and by the turn of the year was one of the first names on the team-sheet. However, with his contract running out, the stalling on his new contract became more and more painful to watch. Russell Martin openly criticised Sorinola’s support bubble, and dropped him for a few games too as the negotiations hit the rocks. But his performances made the youngster undroppable by the end of the season and he took up an offer to play in Belgium.

Ugly:

Russell Martin's departure

Whichever side of the fence you fall on with regards to Russell Martin, the way he left MK Dons in the summer was the most ugly part of 2021 for the club. “No, no, no, actually yes,” was the eventual line from the boss as he took to Swansea City on the eve of the new season, but left under a dark cloud and the humiliating 5-0 thumping at the hands of Bournemouth in the Carabao Cup where it looked like the players had downed tools. Even during the game at the Vitality Stadium, the fans had turned on Martin and the bitterness and rawness of his departure still sting.