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John Askey believes his Vale side must 'take heart' from their performance against Forest Green Rovers

24 March 2019

Interviews

John Askey believes his Vale side must 'take heart' from their performance against Forest Green Rovers

24 March 2019

Vale fell to a 2-0 defeat on Saturday afternoon as a second-half Reece Brown double ensured John Askey's unbeaten run came to an end. Despite the loss however, the boss insists there were still positives to take from the defeat.

Askey named one change for Saturday's fixture as Cristian Montano returned to the starting 11 to face Forest Green Rovers, replacing Luke Hannant who dropped to the bench.

The Colombian impressed throughout the game and found the net in the second-half, only for it to be harshly ruled out for an earlier foul. 

Despite dominating the first-half, Vale struggled to maintain their pressure as the clock ticked down and the visitors took full advantage to go on and win the game. 

Although the unbeaten run has come to an end, Askey was still feeling positive after the game.

He said: "They players have done well today. Obviously, we've not had the ball in the back of the net and that's the most disappointing thing - we haven't made the most of the chances we've had.

"But we controlled big parts of the game against a decent team so we've got to take heart from that.

"They sit fifth or sixth in the league and they're a good side with a big budget and we more than matched them.

"We've just got to move onto the next one and keep doing what we're doing - the points will come."

Now nine games into his reign as Vale boss, Askey has reflected on how far he believes his Vale side have come since he was announced Port Vale manager back in early February.

Over the past few weeks, the players have been full of praise for the boss and they believe they have started to see results, both on and off the pitch, as they adapt to the style of play that Askey is asking for.

Askey has admitted he is happy to see Vale controlling games better over the past few weeks.

He said: "Where we have improved, we control the game better.

"When I first came in, it was like a pinball. We were just banging the ball forward and there was no real control in what we were doing.

"Now the players are putting their foot on the ball more, it's less hurried and we look more assured when we're in possession.

"If they carry on doing that, then that will be enough to get us over the line."


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