Centre-back upbeat about staying up
Pim Balkestein believes that AFC Wimbledon have enough characters in the dressing room to cope with the pressure of staying up.
The Dutch defender returned to Wimbledon’s starting line-up at Bristol Rovers on Saturday, but his commanding performance could not stop his side slipping closer to the bottom.
But Pim is convinced that the Dons have shown enough spirit and desire to suggest that they can survive this season.
Speaking to Rob Cornell on Dons Player, he said: “You want to be a footballer to play under this kind of pressure and I think we have enough characters in the squad to see us through this situation. Despite the results in the last two games, I think we were better than those two teams, but sometimes you do not get that bit of luck in football. Against Barnet I was watching from the bench and we were much the better team. I just could not believe how we lost that game because we had 14 or 15 shots and they had just one or two. We have still been playing well and I think that we can cope with the pressure.”
The former Brentford centre-back says that Wimbledon’s fans have a big part to play in helping the Dons to victory against Exeter City on Saturday.
“The support we have had has been incredible and even after the disappointment of Bristol Rovers they clapped us off,” Pim added. “Our supporters can give us a massive boost sand we can do it. We have to be full of confidence, forget about what is happening with other teams and get two more wins, which we are more than capable of doing.
“The team has done so well since January and we would still be in the top half of the table if you look at our results during that spell. We have done well at home and have only lost once this year. There is a good squad here now and if we can get over the line then I am confident about next year.”
Dons Player subscribers can now watch the full video interview on our premium site.