After weeks of waiting, MK Dons finally return to competitive action this weekend as they take on Shrewsbury Town at Stadium MK.
Due to the EFL's decision to suspend last Saturday's clash with Bury, Paul Tisdale's side are starting their Sky Bet League One campaign a week behind the rest of the division.
With their free Saturday, the Dons held an in-house friendly that enabled Tisdale to get a closer look at his squad.
The training game provided the majority of the squad with an opportunity to get 90 minutes under the belts, with 23 players in total featuring in a highly entertaining and competitive match.
Now, attention turns to Saturday's clash with Shrewsbury Town where MK Dons will be going in search of their seventh opening-game victory in their past 11 attempts.
Kick-off is at 3pm.
THE OPPOSITION!
Manager Sam Ricketts has just entered his first full season as Shrewsbury Town manager after taking over managerial duties in December 2018. In his maiden season as a manager, Ricketts guided the Club to an 18th-place finish last term before adding quality to his side over the Summer.
LAST TIME OUT!
With the absence of last weekend’s opening fixture, MK Dons were put through their paces on Saturday morning in a competitive in-house training match. All-but Alex Gilbey, Rhys Healey, Brennan Dickenson and Jordan Moore-Taylor took part.
FIGHTING TALK!
Paul Tisdale: "Shrewsbury know what it's like to put a great season together and what it's like to fight hard. They got a great result against Portsmouth, they've got some great players and will want to make it two wins."
Sam Ricketts: "They are starting a week later but they will be excited, their first game after getting promoted, playing at home and they are a good team.
OFFICIALS!
Brett Huxtable will take charge of Saturday's clash at Stadium MK. The Devonshire official oversaw three MK Dons games last season, the most recent, a 3-2 defeat at Stevenage back in November 2018.
This season, he has taken charge of just one game, issuing one yellow card.
His assistant referees are Declan Ford and Kevin Howick while the fourth official is Grant Taylor.
HEAD TO HEAD!
This will be the 15th meeting between MK Dons and Tranmere Rovers and it’s the Dons who currently hold the advantage in the series with six wins to their name.
SKY BET ODDS!
Dons win - 23/20
Draw - 11/5
Shrewsbury Town win - 23/10
ELSEWHERE IN LEAGUE ONE!
Bolton Wanderers v Coventry City
Bristol Rovers v Wycombe Wanderers
Fleetwood Town v AFC Wimbledon
Gillingham v Burton Albion
Ipswich Town v Sunderland
Portsmouth v Tranmere Rovers
Rochdale v Doncaster Rovers
Rotherham United v Lincoln City
Southend United v Blackpool
FOLLOW IT LIVE
Tickets for the match, and the 2019/20 season, are priced at £22 adults, £17 seniors and £7 under-18s while under-12s go FREE with an accompanying adult.
MK Dons, in association with Circus Magazine, will be hosting a Big Kick Off event in the Marshall Arena prior to the match. This will include live music, food stalls and activities for children such as the SET football cage and face painting..
To purchase tickets click HERE, visit the Box Office at Stadium MK or call 0333 200 5343. Tickets will be available to buy right up until kick-off.
Can’t make the match? iFollow MK Dons subscribers will have access to live audio commentary of this game - click HERE to sign up for a Monthly Pass for just £4.49 a month.
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 2pm.
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 7pm.