AFC Wimbledon manager Neal Ardley told his players to press high up the pitch in their win over Charlton.

Lyle Taylor scored the game’s only goal to inflict a first defeat on Lee Bowyer as Addicks caretaker boss last night.

Taylor and former Valley striker Joe Pigott never gave Charlton’s defence a moment’s peace. The Addicks have found joy in their new 4-4-2 diamond formation, but they were thwarted by Wimbledon.

Ardley said: “Charlton play a diamond, they play fluid football, and the boys went out there and carried the game plan out perfectly. Tactically, we were spot on.

“In the end, I thought they hardly had a chance, no shots on target, and we’ve ended up having some really good moments.

“But the work-rate and the tactical focus from our players was absolutely outstanding.

“We thought if we played with one up top, it would be too easy for them to play out from the back, and their full-backs get so high and wide that our wingers would have ended up defending and being full-backs.

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“It would have given them control of the game. We sat down and said the best way to win this game is not make it a nice, tactical game where they can play passes.

“We said we needed to get in their faces and we needed to have two forwards because, at times, you can’t play through a diamond because it’s quite congested in there.”

Wimbledon’s 4-4-2 system frustrated Charlton’s rudderless attack.

The Addicks, who remain in the final play-off place, never looked like scoring at Kingsmeadow.

Ardley added: “It’s hard to ask the players to do something if they don’t believe they can do it or they’re not comfortable.

“I said to the boys ‘you will win this game if you’re brilliant without the ball. The with the ball stuff will take care of itself, but if we’re not brilliant without the ball, they will open us up’ and that was our plan.

“We talked about how we didn’t want to let the deep-lying midfielder [Jake Forster-Caskey] get on the ball and Liam Trotter pushed in on him and our two centre forwards pressed high.

“We had a game plan that we didn’t let them have the middle of the pitch. That was the all-important thing and we did it really, really well.”

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