JAKE Buxton says the Christmas fixtures are crucial to Burton Albion as his team look to get off the foot of the League One table.
The Brewers travel to Lincoln on Boxing Day and then have home games against Wigan on December 29 and Oxford on January 2.
The Albion manager said: “We have to pick up points and put ourselves in a good position going into the New Year, allowing us to freshen up the squad in the transfer window.”
Lincoln are second in the League One table and on paper offer the stiffest challenge, but Albion have generally done better against teams in the top half of the table than those near the bottom.
Buxton said: “There is pressure in games when playing teams down there with us and we haven’t handled that as well as I would have hoped. The performances against the top sides have been good.“
Buxton has been impressed with Lincoln’s season so far which sees them up there challenging with the big clubs in the division
He said: “They have the youngest squad in the division. They are full of energy, and have had a good start to the season and we will need to bring our A game and be at them on Boxing Day.
“There’s not a lot between any of the teams in League One, just small details and big moments. We have got to make sure we get the big moments correct as it’s proven that when we do, we pick up points. If we don’t, we concede goals and don’t get points.
“We should be in the mix of clubs above us on 19 or 20 points. We deserve to be in that cluster of teams, but the fact is that we are not, and we have to pick up points to get back in touch with them.
“The last two games haven’t gone as planned. Against Ipswich the performance was good, but we didn’t get the point we probably deserved. Against Doncaster the final 30 minutes of the second half was not what we want, and we did see the players’ heads drop. I have spoken to them about it and told them it’s important we keep going whatever right to the end.
“These next games coming up are crucial for the football club and we will be giving everything we have got to pick up points.”
All the games can be watched on iFollow Brewers with Match Passes available to buy now