Robbie Neilson has left Sky Bet League One side MK Dons by mutual consent. This follows the club sinking into the relegation zone of England’s third tier after a 2-1 loss to local rivals Northampton Town. Assistant manager Stevie Crawford and first-team coach Neil MacFarlane have also left the club.<\/p>\n
The club says that the decision<\/a> was made after Saturday’s loss to Northampton. However, it had been on the cards for a number of weeks after disappointing results against Oxford United and AFC Wimbledon.<\/p>\n Neilson originally came to the Dons from Scottish side Hearts, where he had recently guided them to third place in the Scottish Premiership and earned them a place in the UEFA Europa League.<\/p>\n MK Dons fans took an almost instant liking to their new man when in his first game, they recorded a 1-0 win over AFC Wimbledon<\/a> at Stadium MK. He eventually steered the club to a 12th place finish in the 2016\/17 League One season after the Dons had made a less than impressive start under Karl Robinson.<\/p>\n Neilson vowed to kick on in the 2017\/18 season and publically said that the target for the club would be to gain automatic promotion. A slow start to the season occurred, however, losing three of their first four league games, scoring just twice in the process.<\/p>\n By Christmas, Neilson found his side just three points above the relegation zone; far from the start that he had predicted. The club recorded just one win over the Christmas period. This was a resilient 1-0 win over Peterborough<\/a> in which the Dons played the entire second half with nine players after having Joe Walsh and Osman Sow dismissed.<\/p>\n The final straw in Neilson’s tenure came in another must-win game. The Dons made the short trip to Northampton’s Sixfields knowing that a loss would see the Cobblers climb above them, dumping the Dons into the relegation zone.<\/p>\n Just 16 minutes into the game, John-Joe O’Toole put the hosts in front. Alex Gilbey equalised for the visitors three minutes later, but former Dons loanee Chris Long had Northampton back in front before the break.<\/p>\n There has been no news thus far on who will succeed Neilson, however some fans are calling for academy coach Edu Rubio to take the helm.<\/p>\n Main Photo<\/p>\nFalling Short of Expectations<\/h2>\n