David Artell says that ‘professional pride and responsibility’ needs to be at the forefront of the players thinking as we prepare for the final six games of the season. A 3-1 home defeat to fellow strugglers Fleetwood Town on Saturday has left the Railwaymen 12 points adrift of safety and facing an almost impossible task of surviving in League One.

The Crewe boss could not hide his disappointment following the manner of the defeat after the visitors had regained the lead at the Mornflake Stadium and Artell described the final 20 minutes as a ‘whimper’.

As the Alex prepare to face promotion chasing MK Dons, Artell told the club’s official website: “When you have a poor result or face a difficult situation in sport, life or in our jobs you have to have that professional responsibility.

“We can smart about how bad the result was on Saturday when we knew what was at stake, but we have another game tomorrow and if we can go there and win then it may be the other way round if you like, but we have three great points.

“We will have to play extremely well. We have only shown that in patches this season but not nearly enough. If we can put in a consistent performance and truly believe we can win the game then we have got a chance.

He added: “It hurts where we are and how the season has gone and I think the majority of the players feel the same way. That is for individuals to answer. They are the only ones who can answer that but they have also to understand that there are consequences in football that come with results and maybe some of them get that and understand that and maybe some do not.”