Crewe Alexandra manager, David Artell, says that the players know that the 11 shirts are very much up for grabs after we were on the receiving end of a 3-0 loss to Fleetwood Town at the weekend.

Crewe had been on an encouraging run of just one defeat in eight games and had picked up deserved points at Rotherham and Plymouth, but were second best at the Highbury Stadium.

The game could have been different entering the final stages if the Fleetwood full-back, Danny Andrew, had received the red card he should have done for grabbing Scott Robertson around the throat but Artell wasn’t looking for excuses after the disappointing display.

Artell told the club’s official website: “The players know what the challenge is and that the competition for shirts is wide open.

“They know that and they don’t need telling about that. It is down to them. We cannot do everything for them, we cannot go out and play the game for them.

“They have their own professional pride and standards, as do I and the football club. We will support them as much as possible but it is up to them to play well enough to stay in the team.”