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Daily Record
Daily Record
Sport
Mark Pirie

Barry Robson echoes Celtic 'bring the thunder' vow from Neil Lennon in Aberdeen declaration

Stand-in Aberdeen boss Barry Robson has borrowed from the Neil Lennon playbook as he called for the Pittodrie players to "bring the thunder."

Robson has stepped into the hot seat after Stephen Glass was axed as after a lacklustre 11 months in the Granite City.

The former Dons player will take the team against St Johnstone as he looks to lift the dressing room.

And he took a phrase from the former Celtic boss Lennon as he looked to rally his troops.

Lennon told the Parkhead side "to bring the thunder back to this stadium" and added "I want to make the stadium rock again" when he took over on an interim basis from Neil Lennon.

(SNS Group)

Robson said ahead of his Aberdeen dugout debut: "When you haven't won for a few games, confidence can make you look a bit slower than you actually are. Mentally it can be a bit draining.

"What we will try and do is bring a bit of thunder back.

"I said to the players, when things aren't going well, sometimes you just have to work harder, run harder and be a good team-mate and try and simplify your game a wee bit. It's amazing how far that can take you sometimes.

"Because it isn't always easy being out there as a football player, being judged. I have been there a million times. We just need to try and help them and get a result for the club."

Neil Lennon during his time as Celtic manager (Getty Images)

And he added that he feels sorry for his predecessor - but concedes that's just part of management.

"It's never easy when a manager loses his job. It's difficult for him and everybody connected to the club.

"I felt for him but the one thing you sign up for when you become a football manager is inevitably this will happen at some stage, which is unfortunate.

"I have seen it happen a million times, as a player and as a coach. I just have to try and pick the players up.

"And the thing is, the players know they are responsible for it as well. It's a case of 'let's try and move the club forward and get a decent result on Tuesday.'

"Every player should always feel that. I have played in teams when the manager lost his job and I felt it when I went back that night. You do feel like you have let your manager down.

"The one thing you have to do as a player, you have to bounce back.

"You need to make sure you are doing the right thing for the football club as well as yourself, and that's what we have to do with them now, make sure they start performing the way we expect them to perform and try and put some results together for the football club."

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