Dean Lewington, Samir Carruthers and goalscorer Giorgio Rasulo give their reaction to MK Dons’ pre-season friendly with Everton at Stadium MK...
DEAN LEWINGTON
On Everton friendly...
It was a mixed bag. There were some good bits but obviously some things we need to work on. Overall I think it was a good test for us. They are very good team and they brought down their full squad and played the strongest team available to them. It was a test over the 90 minutes when they’ve got a squad as big as they do, and they can change it by bringing on quality players in place of quality players. It was hard work but a good run-out.
On taking positives form the performance...
In pre-season you usually play teams below you but this was our chance to play someone better than us. The way they play is something we aspire to and we said before the game that it’s going to be a massive learning curve for us. When we find it difficult to break teams down and find problems, how do they go about it? We told the young boys to watch how they do it and to try and learn. As good as it was in terms of us defending and our defensive shape, it was good to watch them and learn what they do. It was a valuable experience.
On Everton friendly...
It was a mixed bag. There were some good bits but obviously some things we need to work on. Overall I think it was a good test for us. They are very good team and they brought down their full squad and played the strongest team available to them. It was a test over the 90 minutes when they’ve got a squad as big as they do, and they can change it by bringing on quality players in place of quality players. It was hard work but a good run-out.
On taking positives form the performance...
In pre-season you usually play teams below you but this was our chance to play someone better than us. The way they play is something we aspire to and we said before the game that it’s going to be a massive learning curve for us. When we find it difficult to break teams down and find problems, how do they go about it? We told the young boys to watch how they do it and to try and learn. As good as it was in terms of us defending and our defensive shape, it was good to watch them and learn what they do. It was a valuable experience.
It’s always a privilege to play against players like that. You want to be up against players like that all the time. It’s good to be on the same pitch as the likes of (Kevin) Mirallas and (Gerard) Deulofeu. It was good test for us and I think the team did really well, to be honest.
On playing against Premier League opposition...
SAMIR CARRUTHERS
It was the first game back and it felt like it’s all coming to head now. Playing someone of Everton’s calibre helps. It was more prestigious game and the attendance was good. It was good to be back.
On the season drawing closer...
It was a great strike. It was nice because it was a very good performance from Giorgio, probably the best Giorgio’s played with the first-team, certainly the most complete. He looked very sharp and he controlled the ball well. Giorgio’s been up and down for a number of years but hopefully now, with a few chances in the squad with it being so thin, he can show everyone what a good talent he is because undoubtedly he’s got the talent.
On Giorgio Rasulo’s goal...
I’m very pleased (to have scored). You dream of things like that when you are a kid. All I want to do is prove myself in pre-season and I feel like I’m doing that.
On confidence gained from scoring...
I got the ball in a good position. It was a good pass from Samir. I just looked up, made a little dummy and put it in the top corner.
On his goal...
GIORGIO RASULO
The pitch is back to perfection so it was good to zip the ball around. It was good to play in front of plenty of fans and hopefully they can come and support us during the season because they’ll be vital for us if we want to push on and do well.
On being back at Stadium MK...
I thought the whole team did well. There were some nerves at the start which is maybe why they had that two-goal head-start. When we composed ourselves we looked good and we looked dangerous. If we play like we did tonight and we cut out the mistakes then we could have a strong season. We probably need a few more players but we’re looking quite strong at the moment so it’s onwards and upwards.
On a strong display...
It’s been a long time (since I played at Stadium MK). The pitch was lovely and the fans were great today. It was good to be back here.
On Stadium MK return...
I just want to prove to myself and everyone here how good I am. Hopefully I can get a chance to play this season.
On proving his worth in pre-season...
I didn’t know I was going to get as much (time on the pitch) as I did but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a tough challenge, against a Premier League team.
On coming on as an early substitute...
On Stadium MK return...
I just want to prove to myself and everyone here how good I am. Hopefully I can get a chance to play this season.
On proving his worth in pre-season...
I didn’t know I was going to get as much (time on the pitch) as I did but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a tough challenge, against a Premier League team.
On coming on as an early substitute...
