BREWERS skipper Jake Buxton has identified his highlight as a player for Burton Albion over his two spells at the club, and looks back on the 2018-19 Carabao Cup run as being his favourite memory.
That cup-run culminated in a fairytale semi-final against Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, played over two legs at both the Etihad and then the Pirelli Stadium.
And Buxton explained how the semi-final was an “unbelievable achievement” not only for the players and coaching staff but everyone involved with the club.
The Brewers captain said: “Even though we lost by a large amount on aggregate, I do believe a club the size of Burton Albion getting to that level is as big an achievement as it gets.
"Burton Albion aren’t expected to win a cup competition but to get to the semi-final and beat the teams that we did is tremendous.”
The route to the semi-final was not easy for the Brewers as they had to beat four sides who were a league or more above them.
They handed defeats to Shrewsbury Town, Aston Villa, Burnley, Nottingham Forest and Middlesbrough before they faced the holders of the competition, City.
Despite the defeat in the semi-final, the achievement of reaching that stage was a moment to cherish for Brewers fans.
Buxton also discussed how much of an influence manager Nigel Clough has had on his career, for which he is very grateful.
“I met Nigel when I left Mansfield Town," said Jake. "I was 23 and all the mistakes I made at Mansfield, I took with me to Burton, but Nigel doesn’t allow you to make continuous mistakes.
"He tells you straight to your face if you are doing something right or wrong. He told me to stop fouling because I was trying to win every ball.
"I was confronting referees week in week out too, so he banned me from speaking to them which also improved me off the pitch too.”