It felt like a very odd match, very much like an end of season nothing match. Franchise were terrible and thankfully look like they will be going down to league two. I hate them.
Charlton had some nice spells throughout the game. We are nowhere near clinical enough but we won that’s the most important thing.
Big one next week and let’s see what happens if we can get three points.
A word about MK's goal. The corner was crazy! Smashed it with the outside of his foot, caught the entire defence out. Amazing technique. JFC should try it!
Yeah I meant to mention it their goal was really, really well worked. That ball in was impeccable.
Ben Reeves hailed his Charlton teammates following Saturday's hard-fought victory over his former club Milton Keynes Dons.
The Addicks dominated for the first hour at Stadium MK and took a two-goal lead through strikes from Ahmed Kashi and Josh Magennis, before Kieran Agard pulled one back for the hosts.
Karl Robinson's men absorbed a lot of MK pressure in the dying stages to hold on for the win and afterwards Reeves was full of praise for his side and the traveling Charlton supporters.
"The most important thing was the win," said Reeves, who put in a standout performance at his old stomping ground. "Hopefully now we can kick on and get another three points in our next game.
"We need to keep focused; the performance today is only going to help us and now we need to take that into next weekend.
"We deserved the win and we knew that they [MK Dons] would have a spell of pressure. We saw it out and, in particular, I thought Ahmed Kashi and Jake Forster-Caskey in midfield were outstanding.
"They were excellent in the last 15-20 minutes, which was great for us, and we had some great support from the stands as well."
Charlton switched to a back three for the final 20 minutes and, despite having let leads slip in their last three matches, Reeves was always confident that they would hold on for the victory.
He said: "Given what has happened in the last three games, where we haven't seen them out, it gives us another option to help hold on to the points.
"Our shape was brilliant after we changed and we even still had the counter attack in us as well."
As you're not meant to comment on the player marks thread, here goes. Rob first up rates Solly a 6 our worst player. Beds is second up & gives Solly a 9 our MOM.
And I gave him 5.5 with the following comment. Am I way off here? I feel like something's not right with him, the way he moves, at times the way he doesn't. Maybe I'm paranoid that his knee injuries have finally caught up with him.
Betterish at times, but then incredibly frustrating at others. He seemed to want to play right wing from the 85th minute. Something is off with him. The way he's moving looks labored. I thought some of his decision making today was poor. Just kind of lumps it forward when in possession (to be fair he's always had a tendency to do that). Maybe I'm off on him, he seems to have gotten alright marks from others. I just think something is wrong there.
My first and hopefully last visit to Stadium MK for a while (based on them probably going down and hopefully us sneaking up) was quite nice to be honest. It's a bit soulless as people have said but comfy seats and in general a nice stadium.
It's a big win, anything but a win would have been disappointing though let's be real, they were pretty poor. I can't think of many of their players I would like at Charton except maybe their number 27 and Agard. MK had a bit of the ball right at the start of the game and it got a bit scrappy early doors second half, other than that I think we controlled the game pretty well. We had five minutes or so of absolute hoofball and I hate it when we do that, especially against a side like we faced today where it really did look like men against boys physically across some parts of the pitch.
Kashi and JFC were at least twice as good as last time out away against Donny, JFC was making some lovely turns while spraying the ball pretty well and Kashi looked a lot more calm and came up with a big goal for us, peach of a pass by JFC for Big Josh's goal. I gave Josh some stick last week saying he was a goalie up front but like our midfield duo he stepped it up. He won a lot of headers, made some good runs, generally made a lot of selfless plays and most importantly gave us some breathing space with another goal, even if it was only for two minutes or so. Lastly I'll mention DaSilva as a standout, his ball control is honestly amazing, he is easily our best player when it comes to getting out of tight spaces and just in general his decision making is very good, I'd genuinely be buzzing if we managed to get him from Chelsea but if we can't I hope he does well for them, he really puts in a shift for us every time I've seen him play. Bauer and Konsa also decent, rest pretty average tbh. Reeves had some ok moments but mostly anonymous, KaiKai waste of space that game but won't write him off just yet.
Two games in hand over Scunny above us and just the 5 points behind them, with us playing a lot of teams around us in the last few games and a few relegation candidates it really is in our hands, I think we might sneak 5th. Safe travels to everyone on their way back still, thought we were in decent voice again
The next match against Shrewsbury is massive. A win would give the players a huge confidence boost and we could really push on from there. A bad defeat and I think we will miss out on the playoffs.
I was rather hoping we could get away with not having to play Shrewsbury, this season.
My second visit to MKD and first points. Glad that we were in the lower tier this time. A great ground, but far too large for them. The MKD fans were silent (other than a few boos for Reeves) until they scored, then actually made some noise for 10 minutes
MKD were very ordinary, but as always we couldn't get that 3rd goal to restore the 2 goal margin and let us relax at the end. Instead it's the usual 5 minutes of extra time, and we all know how that usually ends...
JFC and Kashi were excellent in midfield, really glad for Josh that he's back scoring regularly again. All our CBs played well, Bauer was immense then Pearce continued the good work. Even Lennon did ok when we came on, for a sort of back 3 system. Still concerned that we are vulnerable down the flanks, I don't know if that's the fault of the full backs or the lack of defensive cover from the wide attackers, especially with no Marshall for most of the game.
Much delayed journey home, someone had been hit by a train at Watford Junction, but eventually got a train from Bletchley
Just got home from the match. Totally different feeling from last week I must say. Had a proper family turnout today with both my brothers,three cousins and a couple of nephews as well as a load of mates. First half I thought we were by far the better side and fully deserved our leed. Aribo and Kashi are absolute quality . Second half we hit the woodwork and could of gone two up. We all looked at one an other and thought here we go again. But then we did go two up thanks to big Josh time to relax. But because we are Charlton we concede within a minute or two to get us all agitated again. But for once we defended well in the last ten minutes to send us all home happy which hasn't happened lately.
By the way I had a Chinese geezer with an Australian wife drinking Red Bull and eating a pot noodle sitting behind me. Make of that what you will.
It took us 5 minutes to get a hold on the game but from there up to their goal I thought we were well in control. Then, in true Charlton fashion, we handed the initiative back to them by the lack of concentration that resulted in the goal. Was it Solly who gave the corner away? Whoever it was, I thought it was needless and the resultant goal really picked up their crowd. I was fearing the worst at that point but this week we managed to settle down again and it was a deserved win in the end.
I think MK Dons were bad and it would have been a different story against another team. We really do need to sort ourselves out as to why we throw away leads and put ourselves under pressure.
I thought Aribo had a very good game and made a difference in midfield.
dull game & if KR thinks that's attacking football then my grandma's an alien.
Kaikai is average at best & would rather have not bothered getting him on loan. Seen him play 4 times now & not once has he done anything of note. Palace are welcome to him. Reeves again was poor & once Fosu is back I hope he's binned. Bauer was his usual commanding self & Big Josh is back in the groove. Honourable mentions to Kashi (great strike !) & JFC (great cross !) and Da Silva is, well, Da Silva. Pearce looked steady on his return & Marshall did more in 15 mins than Reeves did in 75, but wtf was that formation ??? Yes, know it was supposed to be 5-4-1 (or 3,2,2,2,1) but for the last 20 mins it was more like 7,2,1. We hardly got into their half & with 5 mins to go we have a free kick 30 yards out & we have 4 men within 5 yards of the ball, 5 defending & just Josh & Aribo on the edge of their box. MK were the worst team we've played this season & we were lucky to come away with a win. But a wins a win & so we move onto next week and a Shrewsbury side who will work a lot harder than MK did today.
I thought their CB Ward (15) was excellent. Won everything in the air and looked decent on the ball.
We had a good first half, but made the mistake of going two up. After that we looked poor for twenty minutes. We came under a lot of pressure after conceding, giving the ball away too often, and were starting to look panicked. In the end going three at the back worked well. Since the disaster v. Oxford (Karl held his hand up for that one) the substitutions haven't been so bad (although arguably the Lennon for Dasilva was asking for trouble). He got massive support throughout out the match: 'Robinson's red army' was sung almost continuously. Great support, over 1,100.
Kaikai looked like a lost soul. He hardly ever got the ball, and when he did he just got rid straight away. Looked nervous rather than disinterested imo. He didn't look like a winger. He doesn't look better than KAG.
Thought Aribo didn't settle today, and Solly also struggled a little. Reeves was busy first half, looked less than solid in the second. Was relieved to see Marshall coming on to shore up the right hand side. Works his socks off, which will do for me in League One.
I think we were lucky that Pearce was on the bench today to replace Bauer. Hope the latter is ok for Shrewsbury.
Josh played well, but unlike some of the reviewers here, I don't think he won much in the air. Really pleased he scored though. Three in four games is it?
We deserved the win, but I'm amongst those nervous about our prospects of promotion. It's an odd league with some unpredictable results and some unpredictable teams. Anything could happen in the next few weeks I guess.
I had a small bet on 3-1. Close when Josh almost scored in the last 10 mins, and Kashi slashed at one when teed up nicely.
When we're sold on Wednesday I'm hoping the knock on effect will be a massive party on Saturday.
[PS Luckily got a lift back to the O2 from Chantel Crawford & her hubby.]
I thought their CB Ward (15) was excellent. Won everything in the air and looked decent on the ball.
No youngster though, James.
Seasoned and experienced, been around for a long time. Came through the West Ham academy, had an extended spell in their 1st team alongside Anton Ferdinand in their run to the Championship playoffs and promotion to the Prem (with Chris Powell, on loan from Premier League Charlton Athletic. ), including the playoff final.
But next season he didn't get a chance in the Prem, being loaned out to then Championship Plymouth Argyle, my nearest League team. I remember he made a huge impression at the time for the 3 or 4 months he was there, but West Ham recalled him and flogged him straightaway to then Championship Coventry City for £1m, where he was a regular for several seasons.
Since then, he's played for Norwich, Bournemouth, Forest and Blackburn. Must be well into his 30s now but loads of Championship experience.
PS: Just checked Wiki - and see Elliott Ward played 4 games in the Prem, for West Ham. And 12 games in the Prem for Norwich City.
dull game & if KR thinks that's attacking football then my grandma's an alien.
Kaikai is average at best & would rather have not bothered getting him on loan. Seen him play 4 times now & not once has he done anything of note. Palace are welcome to him. Reeves again was poor & once Fosu is back I hope he's binned. Bauer was his usual commanding self & Big Josh is back in the groove. Honourable mentions to Kashi (great strike !) & JFC (great cross !) and Da Silva is, well, Da Silva. Pearce looked steady on his return & Marshall did more in 15 mins than Reeves did in 75, but wtf was that formation ??? Yes, know it was supposed to be 5-4-1 (or 3,2,2,2,1) but for the last 20 mins it was more like 7,2,1. We hardly got into their half & with 5 mins to go we have a free kick 30 yards out & we have 4 men within 5 yards of the ball, 5 defending & just Josh & Aribo on the edge of their box. MK were the worst team we've played this season & we were lucky to come away with a win. But a wins a win & so we move onto next week and a Shrewsbury side who will work a lot harder than MK did today.
Did you think Kaikai was poor against Bradford? I thought he done very well against them, including the flick for Fosu for Mags Goal. Might not have been upto it today. We need to remember, with young players it’s inevitable you get inconsistency at this level. Glad we ground out 3 points, by hook or crook
A much needed 3 points against relegation fodder . All been said really .
First program I bought for ages good to see the away numbers 6,257 Pompey there last week wow 7,833 Coventry went there in the cup 2,375 Peterborough took there Dec 30th 944 Plymouth went there Boxing Day 2,924 and 2,566 Oxford and Northampton earlier in the season 1,303 Wigan first game of the season 1,194 Addicks there yesterday
Youngests first away game and a win to start with so he was buzzing .
Suprised with people's opinions on Reeves, I thought he played well and worried them a lot. Other than a overhit pass in the second half. Nearly scored a bobby dazzler in the first half.
dull game & if KR thinks that's attacking football then my grandma's an alien.
Kaikai is average at best & would rather have not bothered getting him on loan. Seen him play 4 times now & not once has he done anything of note. Palace are welcome to him. Reeves again was poor & once Fosu is back I hope he's binned. Bauer was his usual commanding self & Big Josh is back in the groove. Honourable mentions to Kashi (great strike !) & JFC (great cross !) and Da Silva is, well, Da Silva. Pearce looked steady on his return & Marshall did more in 15 mins than Reeves did in 75, but wtf was that formation ??? Yes, know it was supposed to be 5-4-1 (or 3,2,2,2,1) but for the last 20 mins it was more like 7,2,1. We hardly got into their half & with 5 mins to go we have a free kick 30 yards out & we have 4 men within 5 yards of the ball, 5 defending & just Josh & Aribo on the edge of their box. MK were the worst team we've played this season & we were lucky to come away with a win. But a wins a win & so we move onto next week and a Shrewsbury side who will work a lot harder than MK did today.
Did you think Kaikai was poor against Bradford? I thought he done very well against them, including the flick for Fosu for Mags Goal. Might not have been upto it today. We need to remember, with young players it’s inevitable you get inconsistency at this level. Glad we ground out 3 points, by hook or crook
I thought he was ok against Bradford - nothing to rave about or to criticise.
We did close the game out well yesterday - I was expecting us to come under pressure but we controlled things. The only thing is, it was MK Dons we were playing. I thought they were awful and unfortinately for them they are not a dirty team like most of the poorer league one outfits - if they were, it might have helped them against us. I thought conceding so soon after our second, to such a poor team, showed we are still a bit fragile though.
Comments
Charlton had some nice spells throughout the game. We are nowhere near clinical enough but we won that’s the most important thing.
Big one next week and let’s see what happens if we can get three points.
Ben Reeves hailed his Charlton teammates following Saturday's hard-fought victory over his former club Milton Keynes Dons.
The Addicks dominated for the first hour at Stadium MK and took a two-goal lead through strikes from Ahmed Kashi and Josh Magennis, before Kieran Agard pulled one back for the hosts.
Karl Robinson's men absorbed a lot of MK pressure in the dying stages to hold on for the win and afterwards Reeves was full of praise for his side and the traveling Charlton supporters.
"The most important thing was the win," said Reeves, who put in a standout performance at his old stomping ground. "Hopefully now we can kick on and get another three points in our next game.
"We need to keep focused; the performance today is only going to help us and now we need to take that into next weekend.
"We deserved the win and we knew that they [MK Dons] would have a spell of pressure. We saw it out and, in particular, I thought Ahmed Kashi and Jake Forster-Caskey in midfield were outstanding.
"They were excellent in the last 15-20 minutes, which was great for us, and we had some great support from the stands as well."
Charlton switched to a back three for the final 20 minutes and, despite having let leads slip in their last three matches, Reeves was always confident that they would hold on for the victory.
He said: "Given what has happened in the last three games, where we haven't seen them out, it gives us another option to help hold on to the points.
"Our shape was brilliant after we changed and we even still had the counter attack in us as well."
Betterish at times, but then incredibly frustrating at others. He seemed to want to play right wing from the 85th minute. Something is off with him. The way he's moving looks labored. I thought some of his decision making today was poor. Just kind of lumps it forward when in possession (to be fair he's always had a tendency to do that). Maybe I'm off on him, he seems to have gotten alright marks from others. I just think something is wrong there.
My first and hopefully last visit to Stadium MK for a while (based on them probably going down and hopefully us sneaking up) was quite nice to be honest. It's a bit soulless as people have said but comfy seats and in general a nice stadium.
It's a big win, anything but a win would have been disappointing though let's be real, they were pretty poor. I can't think of many of their players I would like at Charton except maybe their number 27 and Agard. MK had a bit of the ball right at the start of the game and it got a bit scrappy early doors second half, other than that I think we controlled the game pretty well. We had five minutes or so of absolute hoofball and I hate it when we do that, especially against a side like we faced today where it really did look like men against boys physically across some parts of the pitch.
Kashi and JFC were at least twice as good as last time out away against Donny, JFC was making some lovely turns while spraying the ball pretty well and Kashi looked a lot more calm and came up with a big goal for us, peach of a pass by JFC for Big Josh's goal. I gave Josh some stick last week saying he was a goalie up front but like our midfield duo he stepped it up. He won a lot of headers, made some good runs, generally made a lot of selfless plays and most importantly gave us some breathing space with another goal, even if it was only for two minutes or so. Lastly I'll mention DaSilva as a standout, his ball control is honestly amazing, he is easily our best player when it comes to getting out of tight spaces and just in general his decision making is very good, I'd genuinely be buzzing if we managed to get him from Chelsea but if we can't I hope he does well for them, he really puts in a shift for us every time I've seen him play. Bauer and Konsa also decent, rest pretty average tbh. Reeves had some ok moments but mostly anonymous, KaiKai waste of space that game but won't write him off just yet.
Two games in hand over Scunny above us and just the 5 points behind them, with us playing a lot of teams around us in the last few games and a few relegation candidates it really is in our hands, I think we might sneak 5th. Safe travels to everyone on their way back still, thought we were in decent voice again
Sooo happy.
Before today my record this season was played 4, lost 4.
But after 5 games and 1050 miles I've finally seen us pick up points.
Hooray
MKD were very ordinary, but as always we couldn't get that 3rd goal to restore the 2 goal margin and let us relax at the end. Instead it's the usual 5 minutes of extra time, and we all know how that usually ends...
JFC and Kashi were excellent in midfield, really glad for Josh that he's back scoring regularly again. All our CBs played well, Bauer was immense then Pearce continued the good work. Even Lennon did ok when we came on, for a sort of back 3 system. Still concerned that we are vulnerable down the flanks, I don't know if that's the fault of the full backs or the lack of defensive cover from the wide attackers, especially with no Marshall for most of the game.
Much delayed journey home, someone had been hit by a train at Watford Junction, but eventually got a train from Bletchley
Totally different feeling from last week I must say.
Had a proper family turnout today with both my brothers,three cousins and a couple of nephews as well as a load of mates.
First half I thought we were by far the better side and fully deserved our leed.
Aribo and Kashi are absolute quality .
Second half we hit the woodwork and could of gone two up.
We all looked at one an other and thought here we go again. But then we did go two up thanks to big Josh time to relax.
But because we are Charlton we concede within a minute or two to get us all agitated again.
But for once we defended well in the last ten minutes to send us all home happy which hasn't happened lately.
By the way I had a Chinese geezer with an Australian wife drinking Red Bull and eating a pot noodle sitting behind me.
Make of that what you will.
I think MK Dons were bad and it would have been a different story against another team. We really do need to sort ourselves out as to why we throw away leads and put ourselves under pressure.
I thought Aribo had a very good game and made a difference in midfield.
dull game & if KR thinks that's attacking football then my grandma's an alien.
Kaikai is average at best & would rather have not bothered getting him on loan. Seen him play 4 times now & not once has he done anything of note. Palace are welcome to him. Reeves again was poor & once Fosu is back I hope he's binned. Bauer was his usual commanding self & Big Josh is back in the groove. Honourable mentions to Kashi (great strike !) & JFC (great cross !) and Da Silva is, well, Da Silva. Pearce looked steady on his return & Marshall did more in 15 mins than Reeves did in 75, but wtf was that formation ??? Yes, know it was supposed to be 5-4-1 (or 3,2,2,2,1) but for the last 20 mins it was more like 7,2,1. We hardly got into their half & with 5 mins to go we have a free kick 30 yards out & we have 4 men within 5 yards of the ball, 5 defending & just Josh & Aribo on the edge of their box. MK were the worst team we've played this season & we were lucky to come away with a win. But a wins a win & so we move onto next week and a Shrewsbury side who will work a lot harder than MK did today.
What a birthday treat
We had a good first half, but made the mistake of going two up. After that we looked poor for
twenty minutes. We came under a lot of pressure after conceding, giving the ball away too often, and were starting to look panicked. In the end going three at the back worked well. Since the disaster v. Oxford (Karl held his hand up for that one) the substitutions haven't been so bad (although arguably the Lennon for Dasilva was asking for trouble). He got massive support throughout out the match: 'Robinson's red army' was sung almost continuously. Great support, over 1,100.
Kaikai looked like a lost soul. He hardly ever got the ball, and when he did he just got rid straight away. Looked nervous rather than disinterested imo. He didn't look like a winger. He doesn't look better than KAG.
Thought Aribo didn't settle today, and Solly also struggled a little. Reeves was busy first half, looked less than solid in the second. Was relieved to see Marshall coming on to shore up the right hand side. Works his socks off, which will do for me in League One.
I think we were lucky that Pearce was on the bench today to replace Bauer. Hope the latter is ok for Shrewsbury.
Josh played well, but unlike some of the reviewers here, I don't think he won much in the air. Really pleased he scored though. Three in four games is it?
We deserved the win, but I'm amongst those nervous about our prospects of promotion. It's an odd league with some unpredictable results and some unpredictable teams. Anything could happen in the next few weeks I guess.
I had a small bet on 3-1. Close when Josh almost scored in the last 10 mins, and Kashi slashed at one when teed up nicely.
When we're sold on Wednesday I'm hoping the knock on effect will be a massive party on Saturday.
[PS Luckily got a lift back to the O2 from Chantel Crawford & her hubby.]
Seasoned and experienced, been around for a long time. Came through the West Ham academy, had an extended spell in their 1st team alongside Anton Ferdinand in their run to the Championship playoffs and promotion to the Prem (with Chris Powell, on loan from Premier League Charlton Athletic.
But next season he didn't get a chance in the Prem, being loaned out to then Championship Plymouth Argyle, my nearest League team. I remember he made a huge impression at the time for the 3 or 4 months he was there, but West Ham recalled him and flogged him straightaway to then Championship Coventry City for £1m, where he was a regular for several seasons.
Since then, he's played for Norwich, Bournemouth, Forest and Blackburn.
Must be well into his 30s now but loads of Championship experience.
PS: Just checked Wiki - and see Elliott Ward played 4 games in the Prem, for West Ham.
And 12 games in the Prem for Norwich City.
Where are you Leuth?
All been said really .
First program I bought for ages good to see the away numbers
6,257 Pompey there last week wow
7,833 Coventry went there in the cup
2,375 Peterborough took there Dec 30th
944 Plymouth went there Boxing Day
2,924 and 2,566 Oxford and Northampton earlier in the season
1,303 Wigan first game of the season
1,194 Addicks there yesterday
Youngests first away game and a win to start with so he was buzzing .
33% 3rd-6th ....... 64% 7th-12th ........3% 13th-20th
100% Roland OUT
We did close the game out well yesterday - I was expecting us to come under pressure but we controlled things. The only thing is, it was MK Dons we were playing. I thought they were awful and unfortinately for them they are not a dirty team like most of the poorer league one outfits - if they were, it might have helped them against us. I thought conceding so soon after our second, to such a poor team, showed we are still a bit fragile though.