Gilbey ready to prove doubters wrong in the biggest game of his career

Saturday night’s play-off second leg against Crawley Town will be the biggest game in Alex Gilbey’s career, but he admitted he had to take a long look in the mirror after the team’s performance in the first-leg.

The dismal showing at the Broadfield Stadium left MK Dons with a mountain to climb tomorrow night, needing to overturn a 3-0 deficit at Stadium MK to stay in with a chance of reaching the final a week later.

That poor performance left the players with some soul searching to do, Gilbey included, with the odds now stacked heavily against them heading into the second leg. But with the permutations clear, Gilbey said the magnitude of the game is not lost on him.

“This is the biggest game of my career tomorrow night,” he said. “I'm not dressing it down or dressing it up. I know what needs to be done, I've looked in the mirror since the other night, and there are some things I need to put right.

“A lot of people have written us off, but for us, it's brilliant. Bring it on. We know, and I know how much ability and talent we've got in the dressing room, how many of the lads want to put it right. There are a lot of people in there who are really disappointed.”

He continued: “The other night was really disappointing, we didn't handle the occasion well enough. We were so far away from what we've prided ourselves on all year. What we've done really well this year is be in people's face, be front footed, attack and score goals. It was a big occasion and people handle it differently, and as a group we didn't. But luckily enough we've got another chance to put it right.

“I've had to make sure everyone is alright. Throughout your career, things like this happen. Even at the top level, it's never smooth sailing. I've tried to put my arm around as many people as possible to get everyone ready.”