Milton Keynes Dons vs Tranmere Rovers; Sky Bet League Two
Milton Keynes Dons vs Tranmere Rovers. Sky Bet League Two.
Stadium:mk.
Milton Keynes Dons 3
- N Mendez-Laing (18th minute)
- A Gilbey (21st minute)
- C Paterson (78th minute)
Tranmere Rovers 0
MK Dons 3-0 Tranmere: MK ease to victory to seal promotion to League One and go top of table
Saturday 25 April 2026 16:17, UK
MK Dons have been promoted to League One after a 3-0 win over Tranmere at Stadium MK.
Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, Alex Gilbey and Callum Paterson scored the goals as the Dons grabbed the win needed to confirm their promotion.
Victory secures the Dons' return to League One after three seasons away and also sees them leapfrog Bromley to go top. Tranmere remain 20th and are still yet to seal their League Two status.
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The hosts took the lead after 18 minutes. Mendez-Laing was first to an attempted clearance and thumped a first-time strike past Tranmere goalkeeper Marko Marosi.
Tranmere nearly equalised when Kaiyne Woolery missed from close range, before MK Dons extended their advantage three minutes after opening the scoring. Captain Gilbey collected Mendez-Laing's pass and curled a strike into the bottom corner.
Tranmere substitute Kristian Dennis had a goal disallowed for offside just after half-time and he had another strike denied by Craig MacGillivray.
But the hosts completed the scoring after 77 minutes when Paterson glanced in Liam Kelly's free-kick.
Warne delighted as MK Dons secure promotion
MK Dons boss Paul Warne:
"I can't decide if 3-0 flattered us or not as we nearly conceded a couple of times but could've scored numerous more goals. But yeah, I'm really pleased.
"Tranmere didn't give up and Pete's got them organised and fighting for him, which is impressive, but in the end, the game, we did end up winning handsomely.
"I'm really proud of the fact I got another promotion and my mum, daughter, son and wife were all here. But I'm just so pleased and buzzing for the lads.
"They look so happy and I get emotional about stuff like this. You don't have many days in your life that are absolutely amazing and the fact that collectively, we've been able to do it for the city, the players, their families and the owner is something I regard greater than the promotion."
