Sympatisk kar, denne Robbo'en vår.
Og YEP har visst fått med seg denne Kvisvik-sammenligningen vår
LEEDS UNITED: My best is yet to come vows RobboPublished Date: 09 September 2008
By Phil Hay & friendsIn the wake of Leeds United's 1-1 draw at Yeovil Town last month, Andy Robinson wore the look of a man who knew he was for the chop.
Denied a victory by a dubious second-half penalty, United's players were less than complementary about the decision-making of the match referee Dean Whitestone.Robinson, however, kept his criticism of the official brief:
"I'm not exactly happy with my own performance," he said honestly.
It was a recurring thought for the winger during the first month of the season, and Gary McAllister seemed to agree.
Before last weekend's match against Bristol Rovers, Robinson was dropped from Leeds' starting line-up and left out of the squad altogether, an unceremonious demotion for one of last season's League One champions.
But McAllister's attempt to shake more quality from Robinson worked perfectly and, after dictating United's victory over Bradford City in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy last week, he produced a dazzling cameo as a substitute in Saturday's 5-2 defeat of Crewe, capped by the pick of a collection of sublime goals.
"
As a manager, you have to explain to players why they're not in the starting XI but also tell them that they've still got a big part to play," McAllister said.
"
Sometimes that falls on deaf ears but everyone who came off the bench (against Crewe) affected the game."
Robinson believes his improvement is directly linked to the slow-down in his personal life which followed the busiest summer he has ever experienced.
The 28-year-old accepted his free transfer from Swansea City to Leeds at the very end of last season and departed immediately for the stag-do which preceded his summer wedding in Las Vegas.
After his honeymoon, Robinson then embarked on a house-hunting exercise as he planned his move north from Wales and the strain of a head-spinning summer has only now subsided.
Still, he admits, his immediate contribution to this season was thoroughly deserving of the axe.
"
I had a good pre-season and I seemed to impress a few people, which is what I'm here to do," Robinson said. "
The gaffer brought me in to make an impact but in the first couple of league games I let myself down with my performances.
"We were all pretty unhappy with the referee at Yeovil, but I couldn't have said honestly that I performed properly either. You've got to be honest with yourself and I knew I was below par. For whatever reason, I wasn't as focused as I should have been.
"I've done the three most stressful things a footballer can do in his life – I got married, moved house and joined a new club – in the space of six weeks. I'm settling in now and that'll make a big difference to me.
"The first few games weren't me at my best, but there's only so many times you can come out and tell people that there's more to come. Sooner or later you've got to start turning it on, and the last couple of games have been better.
"I'm a confident guy and people will see the best of me this season.
"I've had a little dip, no question, but it's early days in my Leeds United career. I'm not going to beat myself up at this stage but I had to improve.
"The manager gave me a kick up the backside and I'm big enough to take that. I've played at this level long enough to know that if you don't deserve a place in the team then you don't get one, and that was the case with me."Timid though his early outings may have been, Robinson's manipulation of a weak Crewe side was a masterful exhibition of the quality which Swansea relied on heavily last season.
His first touch of the ball whipped over an inviting cross which Jermaine Beckford dispatched with a header, and he struck the crossbar with one shot before beating Steve Collis, Crewe's goalkeeper, with another.
Robinson's celebration after the goal appeared to poke fun at recent questions about his fitness, brought on by the shape and size of a player whose stocky physique is unconventional for a professional footballer.
"I know people compare me to the famous Fredrikstad-player Ray Kvisvik. As much as that is flattering, I try to keep my feet on the ground. And my house to myself", he said in amusement.
Asked about Robinson's condition, McAllister said: "
He's a fit guy, and he's among the sharpest in the first five yards.
"He is pigeon-chested but he can play. As much as he won the league last season with a team from a big city, coming up here was something else. The expectancy may be greater. But in the past few weeks he's been coming back."McAllister has no motivation for changing his starting line-up at Swindon Town on Saturday, save to replace the suspended Lubomir Michalik in the centre of defence, but Robinson is at least one player who will force him to consider his individual selections carefully this weekend.
Robinson said: "
The whole team was buzzing on Saturday and you could see that there was a spring in the step of every player.
"I think it's been coming because our last few performances have been good.
"I felt it was a matter of time before we spanked someone and Crewe were on the other end of it.
"We should be able to do that to most teams in the league but the biggest thing for us is going to be grinding out the results in the games where we have to roll our sleeves up.
"It's nice to turn on the style, but it can be a case of horses for courses sometimes – when you're forced to fight. You've got to be willing to do that.
"It's a squad game and the lads who came on wanted to do well, and I'm sure the manager will be happy about that.
"All I can do is to make an impact – to come on and influence the match in the way I did against Crewe. It shows I want to be picked."
