Ardley: I deserve the sack if we can’t win at Haringey

BY MAX HALL

AFC Wimbledon manager Neal Ardley is not taking any pressure off himself ahead of tonight’s FA Cup first round tie at Haringey Borough.

The Dons, in deep trouble in League One, won 4-0 in the EFL Trophy at home to Stevenage on Tuesday but now take on Isthmian League Premier Division opposition.

Ardley said: “We lose Friday, I don’t deserve to be in the job. That’s the long and short of it.

“Tuesday was a start but we’ve got Friday and then we’ve got the Saturday after. I know my short-term targets – what I have to do if I’m going to be in this job. If I don’t achieve them then I won’t be”

Ardley revealed he had pulled his squad together after a run of seven straight League One defeats .

“I showed the lads the numbers,” he said, “I gave an emotional talk to them about this club, what it means to me and where we are, and what I want to see from them. But I have to stop talking at some point and they have to start doing.”

“But the numbers were staggering. I’m talking 93 shots on goal to 64 [by] the opposition. I’m talking 113 crosses to 57.

Twenty-two clear-cut chances – and when I say clear-cut, I mean you would say ‘got to score’ – compared to 16. The other issue is [opponents] have had 16 and scored six, we’ve had 22 and scored one.

“If the boys step up and start tweaking [the stats] even 25 per cent, we win games of football, it’s that simple. For the rest of it, we’re not in a bad place.

“Listen, I’ve said before that I’m a fighter. I’m not going to quit, I’m going to give it everything I’ve got, but I know my results haven’t been good enough. Our league position hasn’t been good enough.”

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