Edu Rubio believes there is plenty that MK Dons’ young players can learn from their two recent cup final defeats.
The Under-23s were beaten on penalties by Chesham United in the Final of the Berks and Bucks FA Senior Cup last Wednesday and fell to a second straight defeat earlier this week, losing 2-0 to Southend United in the Central League Cup Southern Section Final.
While disappointed for the players, Rubio is keen to look at the bigger picture and hopes that the two experiences will benefit the group moving forward.
“We’re disappointed, of course, because we lost the finals and that wasn’t the outcome that we were chasing,” the Senior Phase Development Coach told iFollow MK Dons.
“When you reach a final, you want to win the final so I’m not going to pretend it was just about getting there. However, that hasn’t happened so now we need to reflect and learn from the experience.
“In the last week, we have been exposed to big games in our stadium and these experiences will only help as the players move into the first team.
“These experiences have given them the possibility to understand that when they reach the first team and there are three points up for grabs, there is more to it than just playing football - it’s about making sure you win the game.”
He continued: “We shouldn’t forget that to lose the final, you have to reach it. It has been a positive season but we need to do better in finals and how we play finals.
“We are in a ruthless environment and we’re in an industry where you need to win football matches. We’re disappointment because we could have done better in certain moments, in how we managed the finals.
“It’s important for us to play to our DNA, as we did, but we need to know how to win big games and finals - that is something for us to learn.”
