PREVIEW: Milton Keynes Dons vs Argyle
Ryan Lowe’s Pilgrims hit the road for the second time in a few days, this time to visit Milton Keynes Dons on Tuesday night.
A narrow 1-0 loss at Ipswich Town at the weekend condemned Argyle to a fourth successive Sky Bet League One defeat, and the Greens will be looking to bounce back against Russell Martin’s men, who have an identical record to Argyle heading into the clash.
Sitting just one place above the Greens in 15th, by virtue of a superior goal difference, the Dons secured their first win in six attempts in dramatic circumstances on Saturday, as a last-minute goal earned a 3-2 win over Accrington Stanley at Stadium MK.
Experienced marksman Cameron Jerome, the Dons’ top goalscorer so far this season, gave the home side the lead in the 6th minute, before doubling the home side’s advantage 10 minutes into the second half.
Stanley striker Dion Charles responded to two minutes later to bring his side back into the game, before an Andrew Surman own-goal drew the visitors level on 62 minutes.
The tie appeared to be petering out into a draw until a cross from Matty Sorinola was met by Matt O’Riley, who headed home the winner deep into injury time.
Argyle will be looking to invoke the spirit of their home victory over the Dons, with the reverse league fixture at Home Park in December ending a six-match losing run, courtesy of a Ryan Hardie winner.
The Dons are waiting on the fitness of midfielder David Kasumu, who was nearing a return to first-team action, before a knee tweak delayed his recovery. The English-Nigerian midfielder has not been in a match-day squad since the Dons’ visit to Home Park just before Christmas.
Fellow midfielder Ben Gladwin has also missed the last three matches through injury, while Kieran Agard and Jay Bird are both long-term absentees.
For the Pilgrims, Sam Woods will be available for selection having served his three-match ban after his late dismissal at Northampton Town, while club captain Gary Sawyer continues to work on his fitness after missing the majority of the season through an ankle injury.
The record: P 2 W 2 D 0 L 0 F 4 A 1
We have only played the Dons twice at Stadium MK and have a 100% record. Both games were played on Tuesdays and in League One. Our goals in this fixture have been scored by players of four different nationalities, while Dons’ only goal so far also came courtesy of an Argyle own-goal.
The first time: 18 January, 2011. nPower League One. Milton Keynes Dons 1 Argyle 3
Peter Reid’s men put their off-field problems behind them as they roared to a 3-1 win on their first visit to Milton Keynes on 2011.
Two internationals had Argyle 2-0 up within the first half hour of the game -Zimbabwe’s Onismor Bhasera opened the scoring on 22 minutes and Iceland’s Kari Arnason doubled our advantage seven minutes later with a spectacular long-range effort.
Bhasera threw the Dons a lifeline by putting through his own net on 39 minutes, but Scotsman Chris Clark settled Green nerves with a third goal on 80 minutes.
The last time: 26 December, 2017. Sky Bet League One. Milton Keynes Dons 0 Argyle 1
Derek Adams’ resurgent Argyle won 1-0 at the MK Stadium on Boxing Day, 2017. A rare goal from club captain Gary Sawyer on 16 minutes was enough to ensure that the Green Army left Buckinghamshire in jubilant mood.
Tuesday's clash with the Dons is available to stream live and worldwide on iFollow Argyle. Click here to purchase your pass.