Stags’ boss David Flitcroft has said that Mansfield’s performance at the Alexandra Stadium had ‘everything,’ as his side cruised to a 3-0 victory.
Midfielder Timi Elsnik netted twice in the first half to give the Stags a two-goal lead heading into the break, before forward Tyler Walker added a third in the second period.
The manager was delighted with his side’s ‘ruthless’ nature in the match.
“The lads are spending time on the training ground improving their work,” he said. “It was a resounding victory and one that had everything you want to see.
“Every time we attacked in the first half, we were looking like we were going to score. It was brilliant.
“In the second half we changed shape a little to a 4-3-3. It really settled us. They’re one of the form teams at home and they like having it their own way, and they didn’t get that tonight.
“Timi Elsnik came back into the team, and I think that rest has done him good. He didn’t have the pre-season that the other lads had. His quality is there for everyone to see.
“I’m also chuffed for Tyler [Walker]. In the first half he could’ve had a couple, but he stuck with it and scored a really important goal for the team.
“Crewe move the ball fantastically well. But we were ruthless tonight, and that’s what we were crying out for.
"It was a resounding victory and one that had everything you want to see."
“The clean sheet is about detail. Bobby’s positioning was on a different level tonight. It was a masterful display from him.
“We’ve been really clinical [tonight]. The quality of the finishes were excellent. The lads know how I want to play and they are doing that.”
The win stretched Mansfield’s unbeaten away streak in Sky Bet League Two to 11 matches, something that the gaffer says is due to the hard work of the players over the course of the season.
“I think it’s a mindset. We have another away game that we have concluded [with a win], and we have another trip down to Cheltenham.
“The boys have a willingness to not get beat. I told them today to defend that [away] record.
“The lads have worked hard for each other and we have to respect that work. We can’t go anywhere and not respect that work.
“They [Mansfield fans] outsung the rest of the stadium tonight and I’m buzzing for them. They have travelled a long way and the support they gave was phenomenal.”
The manager also gave an update on Otis Khan’s injury, after the midfielder missed out on tonight’s match due to an Achilles problem, and also stressed the importance of back-to-back wins as we head towards Saturday’s match away at Cheltenham.
“It [Khan’s injury] started to settle down Monday, but it was miles too soon for him to play tonight. We just have to see how it settles down tomorrow.
“It’s not something that we are concerned about. He played with it for around 30 minutes on Saturday. It’s one that we have to assess tomorrow.
“We are desperate for that [back-to-back wins]. We’ll go down the motorway buoyant, but certainly not arrogant. We will make sure that our work is consistent.
“There are a lot of good signs and we are steadily improving on our work. That’s important to me.”
iFollow Stags subscribers can watch the manager’s interview in full by logging into mansfieldtown.net/ifollow later today.
