Nelson will leave no stone unturned to improve standards at MK Dons
The ex-Derby County defender is keen to re-shape things at his new club
New signing Curtis Nelson is bringing with him a Championship mentality, and it looks set to shake things up on and off the pitch at MK Dons.
The 32-year-old defender spent the last two-and-a-half years at Derby County, seeing them promoted from League One to re-establishing themselves in the second tier. Not only does he bring plenty of football experience, Nelson arrives with a Championship mentality, and one which he wants to impart of his new club.
“I’m looking at things I can do better myself and there are things I’m looking at for the team off the pitch too,” he said. “There are things to improve, can we raise the standards, can we make sure we’re ready to push on up the league? Whatever that looks like, whatever that brings, we have to make sure we’re pushing in the right direction.
“If you’re not looking to move forward, it’s not like I don't want to work with you but you have to push to be better. It doesn’t matter wherever you’re playing or whatever you’re doing, you have to look to be better. It is what it is, if that’s what success looks like. If it upsets people, it’s not always a bad thing, we have to learn and build as a group.
“I think it’s important, it’s something the gaffer will push for as well, but he won’t always see the day-to-day, what goes on in the dressing room. He can’t be everywhere.”
Nelson’s leadership abilities saw him donning the captain’s armband during his time at Pride Park, and while that responsibility is currently on the bicep of Alex Gilbey, the new signing is keen to be a leading voice on and off the field.
He continued: “You have to have leaders on and off the pitch. Your standards shouldn’t drop just because you’re not playing. We’ll sit down, review our targets and work out how we want to achieve it, and what that looks like.
“I’ve played with and against quite a few of the lads, so I know what they’re about. The gaffer has put together a really good squad, and we’ve all got the aspirations of going up.
“We won’t be the underdogs going into most games in this league, so we have to make sure we take care of our business and everything else looks after itself.”