Russell Martin has praised two of his frontmen who have hit the headlines this week.
After netting five goals in six games, Rhys Healey has been nominated for both the Sky Bet League One and the PFA Bristol Sports Motors Player of the Month Awards for February.
Sam Nombe, meanwhile, has put pen to paper on a new deal to remain at Stadium MK, following a breakout 2019/20 campaign which has seen him feature 25 times for the first team.
Martin was keen to pay tribute to both players when he met with the media earlier this week.
“It’s deservedly so,” the Dons boss said when asked about Healey’s nominations. “Whether he wins it or not, I'm really pleased for him.
“He has been excellent for us since he took over. He has improved his all-round game and his goals have been tremendous - he scores most weeks, showing the quality he has when we get him in the right areas.
“He appreciates the structure he's given and the demands on him. He's a huge part of what we're doing, not just on a Saturday but every day in training. He has been a massive player.
“It's recognition for what we're doing as a group. I'm sure he'll be the first one to thank his team-mates for helping him get that nomination.
“It's a good sign of what we're doing that, in the position we're in, that we're getting someone nominated for the award. I hope it shows how much we're doing with the players to improve them on an individual level.
“If others get nominated between now and the end of the season, then it means we're doing okay.”
On Nombe, Martin said: “He deserves it. He’s got real promise.
“His attitude is brilliant and he wants to learn and improve. He works extremely hard and if he can brush up a few of his attributes then we've got a real player on our hands.
“He's still young, we won't get consistency every week but we will try to give him everything we can to make him more consistent, to help us as a team.
“The injury set him back a bit but he's starting to get back to full fitness and finding that confidence in himself again. He's also playing a completely different way, so he's having to learn a lot, as are the rest of them in different roles.”
He continued: “The brilliant thing about this Club is that they recognise when people have done well. You have to earn what you get here and he’s done that, so I'm really pleased for him.”
