Chris Marsh: Deadline day drama is only the start for Walsall...

It’s been a whirlwind 48 hours for the Saddlers with a dreadful display at Blackburn followed by the drama of transfer deadline day.

I’ve got to admit I was worried yesterday, writes Chris Marsh.

The hours seemed to tick by without a lot of movement.

And I was getting more and more concerned because everyone could see the squad was severely short of numbers and strength in depth.

The bottom line though is deals did get done in the end. Krystian Bielik looks a shrewd acquisition from Arsenal.

He did well while on loan in the Championship with Blues last season.

Fellow defender Jack Fitzwater also arrived from Albion.

And the youngsters are very welcome additions because there is no denying the team was crying out for another centre-half.

It amazes me that for a good few weeks now Kory Roberts and Jon Guthrie have been Walsall’s only recognised centre-backs.

A staggering 10 days passed between the game at Charlton and the game at Blackburn – and I just can’t believe Walsall weren’t a bit more savvy, they should have got their business done earlier.

That said though, the final 24-hours of the transfer window surprise me every year.

When I was playing, some of the lads would walk into training on deadline day wearing suits.

They would claim they had just been sold. Or that some team had come in with a later offer for them.

I think Jimmy Walker did it about five years in a row just to wind us up.

He’d either wear a suit or claim he had one waiting in the car because he was so in demand.

Nothing ever materialised though!

And in the end it was actually me who moved on deadline day when I joined Wycombe back in 2001.

Ray Graydon spoke to me during training and said Lawrie Sanchez wanted me to go there.

But I didn’t have a suit in my car. I thought about borrowing Jimmy’s but he’s a lot bigger than me!

In the end I just went down in my tracksuit and trainers.

But when I got there Sanchez was wearing ripped jeans – I was better dressed than he was!

It really is incredible everything that happens on deadline day.

But it wasn’t just arrivals at the Banks’s with Simeon Jackson leaving the club to join Grimsby on loan.

Things just haven’t worked out for the striker ever since he joined the Saddlers so it’s best he moved on.

Now all the attention turns to MK Dons on Saturday, which is an absolutely massive game.

I know the performance against Blackburn was hugely disappointing.

But if we’re being honest, that game was a freebie.

It was always highly unlikely we were going to get a result there because Rovers’ squad is so strong.

MK Dons is a completely different story though. They are three points below the Saddlers and occupy the final spot in the relegation zone.

And I dread to think what will happen if Walsall were to lose this game.

I did some scouting on the Dons by speaking to my good friend Adi Viveash about them earlier this week.

He is currently assistant manager at Coventry City and is doing an excellent job there.

Coventry played MK Dons in the FA Cup last week and Viveash was really impressed with them.

They have strengthened the squad since. But from what I hear they are a good footballing side who pass it around well.

Walsall are in for a very tough game.

But what I want to see is the team really taking the game by the scruff of the neck.

I want us to be on the front foot and positive right from the first minute.

Despite what anyone might say, this is a relegation six-pointer.

So whether you are Jon Whitney in or Jon Whitney out; Jeff Bonser in or Jeff Bonser out – let’s all pull together to help the team to three points.

Because I believe this is Walsall’s biggest game in years.