Mark Bonner: Cambridge United boss challenges side to turn tide

Mark Bonner's Cambridge are in their second season in League One, following promotion in 2021

Cambridge United head coach Mark Bonner has acknowledged his team are running out of time to save themselves from relegation to League Two.

The U's have only won one game since the beginning of the year and are next to bottom with 10 matches to play.

Bonner's side lost 1-0 to MK Dons, the side immediately above them in the table, on Saturday.

"We looked like a team that are really struggling, [which] we obviously are," he told BBC Radio Cambridgeshire.

"We're the shoulda, woulda, coulda team at the moment, we're not doing it when we're given the chance."

He continued: "You end up being where you deserve to be and we deserve to be where we are at the moment because we haven't proved ourselves to be good enough - the challenge is whether we can or not.

"We've got to win a lot of games in the last 10 to have any chance. Everything's a worry at the moment because we can't win and we can't score goals."

Cambridge have only found the net six times in 13 games since a 5-0 defeat at Sheffield Wednesday on January.

But Bonner was upset his team were denied one by the referee against MK Dons.

"The first goal was key in the game. We score a goal [by Jack Lankester] that is onside - Sam Smith was in an offside position but in no way was interfering with the goalkeeper at all," he said.

"A minute later, he gives as soft a free-kick as he's going to give and the lad puts it in the top corner. In that two minutes, the whole afternoon shifts."

Bonner added: "For that to be taken away makes the afternoon difficult for us to take because you know that when teams are devoid of confidence the first goal is going to be really important."