Aberdeen manager Barry Robson has fired back at claims his side will try harder against Rangers ahead of Sunday’s meeting between the pair - stating he wants to win every game.
Following the Dons’ 6-0 thrashing by Celtic a fortnight ago, Robson’s former Middlesbrough teammate Kris Boyd blasted an "embarrassing" display and argued Aberdeen wouldn’t have a problem lifting their performance levels when Philippe Clement takes his Rangers team to Pittodrie.
Robson has tasted success in two of his three matches against the Light Blues, with the previous clash proving the final nail in the coffin for Michael Beale’s tenure as Rangers boss. He has also led the Reds into next month’s Viaplay Cup final against the same opponent.
Overall, Aberdeen have recorded seven wins since Rangers returned to the top flight in 2016, compared to just one victory over Celtic across the same period. But Robson insists there's zero truth in talk that Aberdeen apply themselves more when facing the blue half of the Old Firm. He recalled: “If you know me you know I want to win every game. That's what my teams are all about. That’s it. We try and win every game we can. “It is a massive game against Rangers. It’s another big game for us. Clement has come in and gone a bit more direct as a team. They want to play forward. We’ve seen that in the way they play. They seem to want to come after you a lot more. As Rangers teams are, they will be very difficult to play against and I am sure Sunday won’t be any different.” Aberdeen might have the upper hand in recent head-to-head statistics but they currently lie ninth in the Scottish Premiership - 15 points behind second-placed Rangers. “It guarantees you nothing," vowed Robson, when asked if home advantage could be key. "You need to perform, bring your 'A' Game and everybody has to be at their best. They need to play above 90 per cent and if they do that then we give ourselves an opportunity. The fans are huge for us and help us when they are at home. They can be a huge help to us." Several of Robson’s first team squad have been away on international duty since that dismal afternoon in Glasgow. Bojan Miovski started both of North Macedonia’s Euro 2024 qualifiers during the break, while the likes of Luis 'Duk' Lopes, Richard Jensen, Slobodan Rubezic, Jamie McGrath and Connor Barron also featured for their respective national team's. One man Robson has been left particularly impressed with is Barron. The Aberdeen Youth Academy graduate caught the eye while captaining Scotland Under-21s to victory over Belgium last week and has cemented himself back as a pivotal player in the Dons squad following a difficult start to 2023. He said: “He has been brilliant. When we took over, Steve and myself, we pulled him in and told him we need to get back to where you need to be. We took him away and got it all sorted. I had a similar injury myself, showed him what he needs to do and we spoke to the specialist, gave him a pre-season, built him up and now we have Connor Barron back again. It is good to see. We still don’t want to bang him into 50 games and we need to manage them.” Robson confirmed Shayden Morris and James McGarry are both close to full-fitness after spells on the treatment table and he is delighted to have the duo back in the frame because he knows his starting XI could do with an extra injection of speed. On McGarry's progress, Robson replied: “He is back in full training. He has come through today’s sessions and is fine and we will see how he is tomorrow. We have done a couple of speed sessions and that is why we were a bit concerned because we are opening him up to real explosive speeds with everything he has come through with his hamstring. Hopefully, we can get him back in the squad. Fingers crossed he will be okay for Sunday.” While the latest fixture is too soon for Morris to return, his manager is hopeful the winger will be back in action shortly. He continued: “He also trained today. He didn’t do the whole lot. He is still not at full exposure to the speed we are looking at but he is pretty close to it. The weekend will be too soon for him but hopefully after that.”
