Preview: Charlton Athletic

All you need to know ahead of tonight's Carabao Cup Round One tie...

14 August 2018

MK Dons will be looking to make it three straight wins to start the 2018/19 season when they take on Charlton Athletic in Round One of the Carabao Cup.

Paul Tisdale’s men have started the new campaign in strong fashion, following up a 2-1 opening-day triumph over Oldham Athletic by beating Bury 1-0 at Stadium MK last weekend.

Attention tonight turns to the Carabao Cup, though, and it’s a competition that MK Dons have enjoyed real success in during the early stages - a win this evening would be their ninth consecutive Round One triumph.

It would also be the first time they have won their first three games of a season.

Kick-off is at 7.45pm.

Charlton Athletic picked up their first victory of 2018/19 last Saturday and will be looking to build momentum by coming out on top again this evening.

Lee Bowyer’s side beat Shrewsbury Town 2-1 at The Valley - small revenge for last year’s play-off defeat to the Shrews. The Addicks were beaten 2-1 by Sunderland on opening weekend.

Charlton boast a strong record over MK Dons, having come out on top in seven of the past 15 meetings between the two clubs. They have also won four times at Stadium MK which is just as many times as MK Dons have won in total against the Addicks.

MK Dons made it two wins from two to start the season courtesy of a 1-0 victory over Bury at Stadium MK.

Ousseynou Cisse scored the decisive goal for Paul Tisdale’s side, who edged out a tight encounter between two teams who were relegated from Sky Bet League One last season.

Earlier in the match, both teams hit the woodwork - Joe Walsh saw his saved volley hit the crossbar before Nicky Adams struck the post with a free-kick.

Shakers goalkeeper Joe Murphy did well to keep out Ryan Watson’s deflected free-kick in the second half before Cisse’s late winner.

Charlton Athletic’s Karlan Grant grabbed a dramatic 90th minute winner to earn the Addicks a 2-1 victory over Shrewsbury Town and ensure revenge for last year's play-off defeat.

The honours looked set to be shared after Lyle Taylor's 62nd minute opener was cancelled out by Lenell John-Lewis' leveller seven minutes from time.

However, in stoppage time, Grant met a cross from Pratley and sent a deft header past the Shrewsbury goalkeeper into the net to secure a first win of the new season for his side.

Paul Tisdale: “First and foremost, you have to try and win it. We are playing against a team in a higher division but, of course, we are going to try and win it.

“I have to be very careful of the players we have who are fatigued - i.e. Alex Gilbey and Joe Walsh, who are back earlier than expected. We have a number of balance up before making a decision on how we play, who plays.”

Lee Bowyer: “I’m going to play near enough all youngsters. Nicky Ajose will be the only [outfield] senior player. Anfernee Dijksteel – who is still one of the youngsters – Taylor Maloney and Albie Morgan will all play. Apart from that, it will be Under-23s.”

Paul Tisdale hinted at making changes to his side for tonight’s Carabao Cup tie - Alex Gilbey and Joe Walsh were two names that the manager mentioned when discussing the possibility of resting players.

In terms of injuries, Osman Sow (knee), Brandon Thomas-Asante (ankle), Sam Nombe (ankle), Conor McGrandles (eye), Peter Pawlett (ankle) all remain sidelined. Chuks Aneke missed the win over Bury after Tisdale admitted that the Club are in talks about the striker leaving MK Dons on loan.

Lee Bowyer is expected to make wholesale changes to his starting line-up, with Nicky Ajose the only senior player set to be involved.

Young pros Anfernee Dijksteel, Taylor Maloney and Albie Morgan are three others who Bowyer confirmed would play with the rest of the side likely to be made up of Under-23s players.

Jason Pearce, Tariqe Fosu, Ben Reeves, Billy Clarke, Jake Forster-Caskey and Igor Vetokele are all out.

John Busby will take charge of tonight’s tie, refereeing his third match of the season.

The third-year official was busy at the weekend, as he awarded two penalties in the match between Plymouth Argyle and Southend United and sent both managers to the stands.

Busby had three MK Dons appointments last season, including the side’s 2-1 win over Gillingham during which he produced seven yellow cards.

His assistant referees tonight are Garry Maskell and Abbas Khan while the fourth official is Carl Fitch-Jackson.

MK Dons wins: 4
MK Dons wins at Stadium MK: 3
Last MK Dons win: 2-0, 4 Apr 2017 (The Valley)
Biggest MK Dons win: 3-1, 13 Dec 2016 (Stadium MK)

Draws: 4
Draws at Stadium MK: 1
Last draw: 2-2, 18 Nov 2017 (The Valley)

Charlton wins: 7
Charlton wins at Stadium MK: 4
Last Charlton win: 2-1, 17 Feb 2018 (Stadium MK)
Biggest Charlton win: 5-1, 14 Nov 2009 (The Valley)

Full-time result
MK Dons win: 4/6
Draw: 11/4
Charlton win: 4/1

To qualify
MK Dons: 1/3
Charlton: 9/4

First goalscorer
Kieran Agard: 9/2
Dylan Asonganyi: 6/1
Robbie Simpson: 6/1

Tip
MK Dons to win by exactly 1 goal: 5/2
Paul Tisdale’s side have won each of their first two matches by one goal.

Tickets are priced at £12 adults and seniors, £5 under-18s and £1 under-12s while clubRed prices are £18 adults, £7 under-18s and £5 under-12s.

To book tickets click HERE, visit the Box Office/cash-only ticket booths at Stadium MK or call 0333 200 5343. Tickets will be available to buy right up until kick-off.

iFollow MK Dons will have also live commentary of the game for all supporters – click HERE to sign up for as little as £4.49 for a month. Carabao Cup matches are not available to watch on iFollow MK Dons,

Supporters can also stay in touch with the action via mkdons.com’s Match Centre, which can be accessed by visiting the home page from 6pm.

There will also be full coverage on the Club’s social media channels – Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat!

A full match report will be available to view on mkdons.com straight after the final whistle along with full reaction from Paul Tisdale and a player. Highlights will be available to view from midnight on Wednesday night/Thursday morning.

***

Elsewhere in the Carabao Cup…

Tuesday 13th August
Nottingham Forest v Bury, 7.30pm
Blackpool v Barnsley
Carlisle United v Blackburn Rovers
Crewe Alexandra v Fleetwood Town
Grimsby Town v Rochdale
Leeds United v Bolton Wanderers
Macclesfield Town vBradford City
Mansfield Town v Accrington Stanley
Middlesbrough v Notts County
Oldham Athletic v Derby County
Port Vale v Lincoln City
Preston North End v Morecambe
Rotherham United v Wigan Athletic
Scunthorpe United v Doncaster Rovers
Sheffield United v Hull City
Shrewsbury Town v Burton Albion
Tranmere Rovers v Walsall
Bristol City v Plymouth Argyle
Bristol Rovers v Crawley Town
Cambridge United v Newport County
Cheltenham Town v Colchester United
Exeter City v Ipswich Town
Millwall v Gillingham
Norwich City v Stevenage
Oxford United v Coventry City
Portsmouth v AFC Wimbledon
Queens Park Rangers v Peterborough United
Southend United v Brentford
Swindon Town v Forest Green Rovers
Wycombe Wanderers v Northampton Town
Yeovil Town v Aston Villa
Reading v Birmingham City, 8pm
West Bromwich Albion v Luton Town, 8pm

Thursday 15th August
Sunderland v Sheffield Wednesday

*All matches kick-off at 7.45pm unless otherwise stated.

Match Reports

Report: MK Dons 3-0 Charlton Athletic

Paul Tisdale's men into Round Two of the Carabao Cup...

14 August 2018

MK Dons maintained their 100 percent start to the 2018/19 season by comfortably beating Sky Bet League One side Charlton Athletic in Round One of the Carabao Cup.

Dylan Asonganyi scored his first senior goal early in the first half and that was followed by Ryan Watson’s first goal in an MK Dons shirt.

Paul Tisdale’s men then added to their lead in the second half courtesy of an own goal, securing the their third consecutive victory and their ninth successive Carabao Cup Round One win.

Manager Tisdale made four changes to his starting XI, with Baily Cargill and Mitch Hancox coming into the side for their MK Dons debuts alongside David Kasumu and Saturday’s match-winner Ousseynou Cisse.

Kasumu, making only his fourth appearance for MK Dons, almost created a chance inside the first two minutes but he overhit his pass to Callum Brittain. Charlton then threatened with a cross from Mark Marshall but George Williams was there to head away.

It was Paul Tisdale’s side who edged the opening exchanges and they were rewarded with a goal on nine minutes.

Addicks centre-back Jo Cummings failed to deal with a long ball forward and young striker Asonganyi pounced. He outmuscled Ryan Blumberg on the edge of the area and then fired a fierce volley into the bottom corner of the net to register his first senior goal in only his second appearance. 1-0.

Hancox had a half-chance to make it two-nil five minutes later but, under pressure on the edge of the D, he sliced his effort over the crossbar.

It wasn’t to matter too much, though, has a little over 60 seconds later, Tisdale’s side doubled their lead through Watson who, after a driving run forward, curled a delightful right-footed shot past the outstretched Dillon Phillips from 25-yards out for his first goal since arriving from Barnet in the summer. 2-0.

Charlton tried to respond on 19 minutes, forcing a corner which was taken from the left. MK Dons couldn’t get the ball out of the area for a moment but some whole-hearted defending allowed them to eventually see out the danger.

Cisse and Watson then combined to create a chance for the latter to grab a second goal but the MK Dons number 7 saw his low effort blocked by Jennings. Hancox pounced on the loose ball but couldn’t connect with Asonganyi, who was lurking near the penalty spot.

Albie Morgan troubled Nicholls for the first time on 27 minutes but the MK Dons goalkeeper was equal to his long-range drive. Charlton then found themselves in a 3-on-2 situation but Walsh did enough to hold up their attack and allow time for his defensive partner Cargill to get back and make the tackle.

A confident Asonganyi, buoyed by his goal, tried his luck from distance on the half-hour mark but couldn’t keep his right-footed effort down. Nicky Ajose went for goal with an ambitious shot of his own moments later but he too cleared the crossbar.

With 10 minutes remaining in the first half, there was a sniff for Watson on the edge of the box after Cisse nodded down Brittain’s excellent cross-field pass. The midfielder lined up a volley but had the ball nicked off his toes by a recovering defender.

MK Dons were dominating possession and limiting their visitors to long-range attempts as the first-half drew to a close. Watson was particularly lively for the hosts and he forced Phillips into a save on 40 minutes.

Cisse was another who was having an excellent first 45 minutes and he was unlucky not to see his teasing cross turned in for a third goal late in the half. Shortly afterwards, the whistle blew.

With one eye on Saturday, Tisdale made a change to his side at the break replacing Jordan Houghton with Jordan Moore-Taylor.

His side remained on the front foot and Brittain went close to adding an early third but hit the wrong side of the netting on 47 minutes.

Near the hour point, Charlton’s Reeco Hackett-Fairchild thumped a 20-yard drive just wide of the right-hand upright. The youngster went even closer moments after but this time he was denied by a terrific save from a diving Nicholls.

MK Dons countered with Brittain picking out Watson on the edge of the area but the midfielder saw his low shot blocked. At the other end shortly after, Charlton saw penalty appeals waved away after Ajose took a tumble in the box.

On 65 minutes, Tisdale introduced Oran Jackson for his first senior appearance November 2016. He replaced Cargill, who had a solid first outing in an MK Dons shirt.

His players continued to push forward in search of a third goal to make their victory safe and it arrived on 70 minutes courtesy of an own goal. Kasumu lofted a wonderful pass into the path of Brittain, whose fierce cross was deflected past a helpless Phillips by Cummings. 3-0.

Charlton tried to restore some pride with a quarter of an hour remaining but substitute Brendan Sarpong-Wiredu’s header was tipped over by Nicholls.

It was MK Dons, though, who almost scored again on 80 minutes but Asonganyi’s on-target drive was blocked by a sliding defender.

With the tie all but settled, focus for Tisdale’s side was to secure a second straight clean sheet and the manager saw two of his young players on the pitch, Jackson and Kasumu, deny efforts from Ajose and Doughty late in the game.

In fact, it was MK Dons who had the better of the late chances with both Robbie Muirhead - a late substitute - and Asonganyi forcing Phillips into saves and Watson firing just over.

The scoreline didn't change in the end leaving a 3-0 scoreline which nobody inside Stadium MK could have any complaints with.

Starting XI: Nicholls; Brittain (Muirhead 77), Williams, Walsh, Cargill (Jackson 65), Hancox; Houghton (Moore-Taylor 45); Watson, Kasumu; Cisse; Asonganyi.

Unused subs: Sietsma, Nesbitt, Sole, Agard.

Goals: Asonganyi (9), Watson (16), Phillps O.G. (70)

Sponsor’s Man of the Match, as chosen by DW Fitness First: Dylan Asonganyi

Referee: J Busby

Attendance: 3,052 (342 away)

Milton Keynes Dons

Standings

Preview: Charlton Athletic

Baily enjoying life under Paul Tisdale

Extended highlights: Charlton Athletic

Game in 2: Charlton Athletic

Gallery: Charlton Athletic

Report: MK Dons 3-0 Charlton Athletic

Baily enjoying life under Paul Tisdale

Extended highlights: Charlton Athletic

Game in 2: Charlton Athletic

Gallery: Charlton Athletic

Standings

Fixture News

Baily enjoying life under Paul Tisdale

Extended highlights: Charlton Athletic

Game in 2: Charlton Athletic

Gallery: Charlton Athletic

Fixture News

Baily enjoying life under Paul Tisdale

Extended highlights: Charlton Athletic

Game in 2: Charlton Athletic

Gallery: Charlton Athletic