SOW ENDS MK GOAL CURSE ON DEBUT
MK DONS ended a five-month run without a goal or a victory at Stadium MK thanks to debutant Osman Sow’s second-half winner.
The Swedish forward, signed for a second time by MK boss Robbie Neilson after a two-year spell together at Hearts, arrived on Thursday after a brief one-year stay in the Chinese Super League.
And he wasted no time netting MK’s first goal at home since the beginning of April.
It could have ended differently however, as a dramatic final five minutes saw both sides miss late penalties as MK’s Kieran Agard and the visitors’ Josh Wright passed up opportunities in the dying minutes.
“It’s a great debut for Osman,” said Neilson. “I was in two minds about whether to start him or not.
“But he’s looked sharp in training so I gave him the opportunity, and thankfully it’s worked out.
“He’s a good player and he gives us a lot of options going forward. We have to get his fitness levels to the right standard.
“He’s been working hard and training in China so he’s well on the way to getting to full fitness.
“We just wanted to get the three points after not picking up a win yet this season, so it’s been a pleasing day in terms of the result.”
It was a hopeful ball into the Gillingham box from Aaron Tshibola, little more than a minute after the half-time break, that found Sow lurking at the back post before the Dons debutant nodded home with a diving header.
MK should have doubled their lead ten minutes from time after Ryan Seager was brought down by Gillingham keeper Tomas Holy inside the box, before Agard’s resulting spot-kick was well saved by the 25-year-old stopper.
Gillingham’s Wright was then given his opportunity to level the clash with his own spot-kick three minutes from time after MK keeper Lee Nicholls was judged to have fouled Liam Nash in the box.
But the Gills’ captain blasted his spotkick over the crossbar, as MK held on and recorded their first win of the League One season.
“It’s the same old stuff at the moment,” admitted Gillingham boss Adrian Pennock, whose side are still winless this season.
“We’re not taking our chances in front of goal and we’re conceding goals at the same time.
“We should never have lost that game to be honest, so I’m really disappointed to be coming away again without picking up the right result.
“We had enough play and bossed the game in large periods; we had some half chances that we didn’t take, so again it’s one of those games that we’re just not doing the right things.
“We have to start breaking our necks in the box to get onto some of these chances, and then goals will start to come.”