Johnnie Jackson hoping AFC Wimbledon ‘more protected’ against losing star men in January transfer window
AFC Wimbledon boss Johnnie Jackson said that his side are set on protecting and building upon their biggest assets in the upcoming January window after going fourth in League Two with a victory over Doncaster on Saturday.
The 1-0 win at Plough Lane, courtesy of a header by Matty Stevens, moved the Dons above the visitors on goal difference and put them firmly in contention for the promotion places.
Summer signing Stevens pushed himself to the top of the division’s top scorers list, and will be the kind of acquisition that Jackson is hoping to hold on to and build upon in the new year.
“I tried to sign Matty last January,” said Jackson. “Around that time we had a conversation but he ended up going to Walsall on loan, so we missed out at that stage. But obviously he knew that I liked him as a player. We spoke in the summer and it was the right time and the right fit.
“I’m not surprised that he’s scoring. We have to play to his strengths and the team is set up well to get the best out of him. He’s not just a scorer – he gives the team a lot. He holds the ball up, competes aerially and does the hard graft out of possession.”
Jackson said he was aware of the club’s financial realities, but his team had a plan that should allow them to come out of the window in a position to continue competing for promotion.
Jackson said: “We’ll probably do business in January, obviously we’re not flush, we’re not one of the big hitters in terms of our budget and what we can do as a club, but we will do some business. It will be prudent and it will be within our means, but we have some ideas about what we want to do.
“I’d like to keep our best players, but you never know. I think we’ve structured it this summer in a way where we’re a little bit more protected in January – but it’s difficult to know. I don’t anticipate losing any of my players. I want to come out of the window stronger.
“One thing that I’ve never been able to do with the club is come out of a January window stronger than we’ve started it, so that’s the aim.”
PICTURE: KEITH GILLARD