Mark Robinson has spoken about the importance of keeping the majority of last season’s squad after he announced the retained list for 2021/22.
After guiding The Dons to League One safety with an impressive sequence of results during the final few months of the season, Robbo is determined to push the club forward. Our Head Coach has started that process by announcing players under contract, those leaving the club, and providing an insight into his plans for developing young talent.
“We want young and hungry players with a point to prove,” said Robbo. “Those players must work hard to be the best that they can be, so that we can progress as the season goes on, but we also need an element of experience in there. I think we’ve got that if you look at the players we’ve retained. We are in discussions with some of our current players about new contracts.
“We’ve made an offer to Joe and I am confident he’s been impressed by what we want to build. If it’s a case of Joe continuing to play League One football then I believe he will stay. I think there’s a big part of him that wants to stay and take us forward as a club, but if offers come in from Championship clubs it understandably may be a different thought process for him.”
Below is the full list of retained players, plus more from Robbo.
Players under contract
- Nik Tzanev
- Matthew Cox
- Elliott Bolton
- Dan Csoka
- Will Nightingale
- Cheye Alexander
- Jack Madelin
- Nesta Guinness-Walker
- Ben Heneghan
- Jack Currie
- Paul Kalambayi
- Huseyin Biler
- Paul Osew
- Alex Woodyard
- Anthony Hartigan
- Ethan Chislett
- Jack Rudoni
- Ayoub Assal
- Ollie Palmer
- Corie Andrews
- Zach Robinson
Robbo explained that there’s been a key change in terms of contracts offered to young players who he feels can be a part of our future.
“In the past it has always been a contract of one year and an option for our young players, this meant the lads have had very little time to develop. Giving a young talented player just two years to establish himself in the first-team is unrealistic, especially if they are only playing Under-23s football or end up sitting on the bench.
“Now it’s a completely different approach as we want to give these young players longer to develop. Therefore we are giving them two year contracts with a one year option. We want to give them a structured and well considered pathway by getting them out on loan playing regular football. That means I have to be brave enough to not put them in my squad, unless it’s absolutely necessary.
“If you look at Ayoub’s transition to the first-team we got him out on loan early as a second year scholar to Met Police and now we can really see the benefits of that. We want to give every young player an opportunity to reach their full potential. By the same token there will be a huge emphasis on them being highly accountable for their own development and loyal to the Club for the huge investment and development we have put into them for a club of our resources.”
Players leaving
- Callum Reilly
- Shane McLoughlin
- Luke O’Neill
In case you missed our previous article, which praised the contributions of all three players, you can view it on the official website .
Players returning to their parent clubs
We thank all the following players for their part in retaining our League 1 status:
- Sam Walker
- Darnell Johnson
- George Dobson
- Ryan Longman
- Jaakko Oksanen
In addition, Robbo added that further talks are planned with Shayon Harrison about his future and David Fisher has been offered a chance to re-sign for us. After showing rich promise during his Dons academy days, young forward David enjoyed a prolific spell at Hampton & Richmond Borough last season and Robbo believes he has a bright future at Wimbledon. The recruitment committee has also pinpointed several targets to join the squad if players do not take up their new offers, as well as targets to further strengthen the squad. Robbo has also made presentations to Premier League clubs with regards to potential loans.