Why Doncaster Rovers' players need to be more like skipper Tom Anderson according to the boss

The Rovers boss is encouraging his squad to concentrate on the basics of the game first and foremost in order to provide the foundations for better performances following the difficult start to the campaign.

And he feels there is no finer example in his group than skipper Anderson for the benefits of sticking to the basics, with the no nonsense approach seeing him emerge as one of the best defenders at the level.

“Tom Anderson is a fantastic example of that,” Wellens said.

“He’s the best player we’ve got for doing the basics right. He knows what the strengths of his game are and he sticks to that.

“What we have to do is make sure we do the basics right. If we do that then it’ll give a good foundation to build from.

“We can’t go out thinking ‘I’m Ben Close, John Bostock or Ethan Galbraith and I just want to get on the ball and just play.’

“They have that naturally.

“What we need when they go out on the pitch is for them to fight, to be physically a match for their opponent, match their runners and track runners.

“Once they do all that, their footballing ability will all come out.”

Wellens felt his side dealt with the basics well against MK Dons as they earned a 2-1 win prior to the international break.

And while he feels doing so will be important against any side this season, he has emphasised the importance of it against today’s opponents Wycombe Wanderers.

“It doesn’t matter the opposition but against the best sides you’ve got to do it,” he said.

“Whoever finishes above Wycombe this year will win promotion because they’re that good.

“The basics were very good against MK Dons and I thought out of possession we were exceptional, which we’ll need to be again against a very good team.

“We probably need to be better on the ball.

“Wycombe play a similar shape to MK Dons but they test you physically, where MK Dons are more possession based and they’ll play in front of you so you can regroup in your shape and close your distances.

“Wycombe are a strong, powerful team and they’ll do things a lot quicker.

“We need to make sure we’re on it out of possession because they’ve come down from the Championship and they are a threat.”

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