Robertson insists Scotland need to give Tartan Army something to shout about

Andy Robertson feels it’s incumbent on the Scotland players to give the Tartan Army something to believe in.

Coming hard on the heels of the defeat to Switzerland, Tuesday’s loss to Slovenia saw many supporters head for the Hampden exits early with some who remained deciding to boo the team off the park.

And while Sebastien Pocognoli’s brand of front-foot football has clearly not yet produced the desired results, skipper Robertson insists the players he picks must produce more on the field if supporters are to become engaged with what they are witnessing.

‘At the end of the day, fans react off players, and that’s always the way in football,’ said Robertson.

‘Don’t get me wrong, before a game, the crowd can be up at any stadium I’m talking about. But if we are under pressure at the start, or we’re not keeping the ball, or we’re making mistakes, then, of course, the crowd are going to get frustrated.

‘So, it’s on us to start well, start better, do the right things.

Second half, we’re 1-0 up and trying to tweak a few little things.

‘I think Jack (Hendry) had to make a last-ditch tackle 30 seconds into it. That’s not the way to start the second half.

‘The fans are then going to be even more frustrated and everything like that. So, for me, it’s completely understandable when we perform like that.

‘When we do good things, then I would hope that they would then react and try and push us and try and help us.

‘But at the end of the day, they had too many comfortable passes, they got through us too many times.

‘I could understand the frustration from everyone inside the stadium, because the 11 players on the pitch were frustrated, the manager was frustrated, the backroom staff were frustrated. So, I think the fans had every right.’

After a passable first half, Scotland wilted in the second period and could have lost by more goals in the end.

Although reluctant to offer any point of mitigation, Robertson feels that playing four games in 11 days may have contributed to the outcome.

‘I think you’re fair to say leggy,’ added the Tottenham defender.

‘It’s been tough, it’s been intense, especially for the lads that have played all four games.

‘But after the game, I said to all of them, as far as I’m concerned, the other team had the exact same schedule and they looked a lot fresher, they looked a lot better, they looked a lot freer and things like that.

‘For me, there’s not really an excuse there. There’s not really an argument, because we’re playing against a team that had the exact same schedule as us.

‘I just think that they got momentum at the right time and they really kicked on.’

Appointed manager after Steve Clarke walked away after failing to take the team beyond a group stage in three attempts,

Pocognoli hopes to take the national team further by playing a more attacking brand of football with a real front-foot approach.

While four points from the opening four Nations League matches represents slow progress, Robertson feels that patience is required.

‘Yeah, 100 per cent,’ he stressed. ‘That’s why it’s important people stay positive. I know fans want results and everything like that.

‘I remember when Steve (Clarke) first came in and we didn’t get results, they were really frustrated and maybe the attendances dropped.

‘I can completely get that. But us inside the changing room, we have to keep believing and we do.

‘We’ve done a lot in these last two-and-a-half weeks to understand what the manager wants, how he wants us to play and how we wants us to go about it. It’s up to us to show that.

‘I think we did against North Macedonia and we now need to show it more on a consistent basis. We also have to remember people asked for change, asked for new people in the squad.

‘We’ve done that. We’ve freshened it up and brought in players people would argue should be in it.

‘They’ve shown why they should be here, but it’s also about gelling as a team again.

‘We have to get that bond off and on the pitch. That’s what the last few weeks have been vital for, getting the young lads in and experiencing international football — but also knowing what it takes.

‘This has been a really intense period and they’ve been thrown in at the deep end.

‘They’ll have a feeling of what it’s like to play for the country now and hopefully it’ll stand us in good stead in the future.

‘Hopefully this squad can take it on and come the qualifiers and, hopefully, the Euros, we will be ready and a better team for it.’

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