Karl Robinson on Salford's 8-0 City cup defeat
11/01/2025
Etihad Stadium, manchester, Uk
11/01/2025
Etihad Stadium, manchester, Uk
Category
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SportsTranscript
00:00Jürgen, you've probably got bigger things to worry about than losing an FA Cup tie at
00:18Man City, but how have you tried to lift the players after that, or have you tried yet?
00:24Not yet! I just said the first thing I said to the players seven games ago,
00:29whether they were going to concede eight goals in seven games,
00:32I would have taken it, I just didn't expect them all to be in that one match.
00:36I'm so proud of them, I think I said in the build-up to this that I knew coming into this game
00:42how this football club and how this manager respects everybody,
00:47and there's intensity of his players and himself,
00:49but there's always going to be a problem this afternoon, this evening,
00:52and to come up against them in the form that we're in,
00:56the thing for me that I'll hold and look back on is some of the silly errors that we made,
01:01I don't think they had to work too hard for some of their goals,
01:04and that's the bit that I'll be a little bit frustrated by.
01:07But I'm not going to carry it forward into next week and use it as an opportunity to slag the players,
01:12I'm proud of them, and our objective in the summer was to get out of the league that we're in,
01:17and we put ourselves in a wonderful position, 12 months ago we were fighting relegation in the same league,
01:21and to be sat here today is a privilege for us as a football club,
01:25to come up and bring 5,500 fans here, and to be in the automatic places within our league,
01:33I think we sit in a very, very good place.
01:38I appreciate what you're saying, and you're obviously right, but you're also a professional,
01:44what does it feel like, stood on the sideline?
01:48Not great, there's always that element of you that you have, that personal pride,
01:52it doesn't matter whatever you do in life, you always want to win.
01:55But you've also got to respect the quality of the teams and the people you're coming up against.
01:59I always said when I come into these games, I've done this long enough now,
02:02that I've always used it as an opportunity for us to be better moving forward, regardless of the result.
02:07So you take the finer points out of it, and you go, well, this was good, that wasn't,
02:11and make sure that you can pick things out of it, and you can be challenged in areas that you're never going to be challenged at your level.
02:16But there is that little bit of element that you feel frustrated, but I'm not going to.
02:19I'll have a go at myself first, blame me, not my players.
02:23And we'll just make sure when we come into work next week, we'll be better because of what's happened today,
02:28mentally as well as physically and tactically and technically.
02:31That's the only bit I'm a little bit with them, I said to them in there,
02:34just the silly way in which we turned over possession and no pressure whatsoever.
02:39I watched the Liverpool game before ours against Accrington,
02:42and the difference where it drops to a top player and he tends to find his own with the duels,
02:47where we and Accrington today, when it did drop, we'd give it away silly,
02:51and I think the first goal where Tilton jumps up in the air and he can head it down to one of our players,
02:55he puts it back into a knee where we're going to lose possession.
02:58They're the things that I'll take away and wish we would have done a little bit better,
03:01but I'm not going to have a go at them, I'd rather have a go at myself.
03:04Do you get them in and say, look what happened, or do you say, forget that?
03:10It's going to be a long debrief.
03:12There's a lot of pictures, but I'm not going to do that.
03:15I will use, moving forward, whatever our last game was in our league,
03:18and whatever the team that are playing next week,
03:20we'll make sure that we will work on all of their weaknesses.
03:24I'm sure their video footage when they're going to play us,
03:27I'm not too sure they're going to use Phil Fole nor Jack Wheeler,
03:29it's popping into areas that they want.
03:31So I don't think any of us, certainly at our level,
03:34I don't think you can use the FA Cup as a benchmark to criticise or hold any grudge on your own players.
03:41Evening, Karl.
03:42Evening, mate.
03:43We've wondered about City in recent weeks because of their results,
03:46you've seen them first-hand, you've seen them also without their first choice starting XI,
03:51what's impressed you about them tonight?
03:53The one thing with Man City, because when the manager's been somewhere for so long,
03:59they're institutionalised in a philosophy, a style, a mentality,
04:04and there's an expectancy regardless of whoever puts that shirt on,
04:07there's a burden that goes with that that you have to work hard.
04:09And the quality that they possess is clear for everybody to see.
04:13And we were just saying that when we got the team sheets of one or two players, O'Reilly and people like that,
04:17we've known coming through the ranks that we've seen before,
04:20and to see them giving them opportunity,
04:22we knew how good they were always going to be this evening.
04:24And I think when you look at the top, top level,
04:27the quality of coaching in this country now and the players that are coming through
04:31underneath the stars who play week in, week out,
04:34are just as talented.
04:36And in some ways they've maybe got a little bit more to prove,
04:39so the levels of intensity grown, the strike and the movement today was fantastic.
04:44And we found that very difficult with their pace and their energy to cope with,
04:48and it's a pleasure to see how many good players,
04:52well, it's not really, it is for them, it's not for me,
04:55but it just shows you how much quality this football club possesses.
04:59And how much have you learnt tonight as a manager?
05:03Not to win the second round.
05:07To take away from this, we'll take away very little other than pride,
05:12we've brought 5,500 fans, we're 10 years old,
05:15and this is from the owners taking over.
05:18We've got so much more to go.
05:20So many more years of learning and maturing and becoming better
05:24because of days like today.
05:26It's not like we've been here before, we've not been at this level before,
05:30nothing being a Premier League team away, we've ticked a number of boxes.
05:34And when I first came here 12 months ago,
05:36to think that we're sat here in front of you, where we are in the league,
05:39having just played Man City, regardless of the result,
05:41I think it's a tremendous achievement by everybody involved.
05:50When you talk about self-blame, are you not being a little bit harsh on yourself?
05:55If I don't take it, you're looking for me to put it on to my players.
05:58I'm certainly not going to do that.
06:01I didn't ask the question before,
06:03the personal pride aspect of it is always going to be hurt,
06:06and because of that I can't put my hurt on to players,
06:08I'd rather put it on to myself first.
06:10That's just the way you know me quite well, that's always been my personality.
06:13I never, coming into this game at any time,
06:16thought this was going to be an opportunity to have a go at my players.
06:19Because they give me everything week in, week out,
06:21and we're on this journey together.
06:23And like I said before, we're better because of what's happened today.
06:27How will you benefit as a coach, having experience tonight?
06:34Like I say, it's not like it's the first time we've come up against these teams,
06:37and I think every time you come up against a man of the stature,
06:40like Pep Guardiola, you're always looking at the little things,
06:44and today some of his tactical things were completely different.
06:47To see where that right-sided defender in some ways ended up into midfield,
06:52naturally in the build-up, and started in them areas,
06:55that was a real difficult play.
06:57You don't get that, the quality of the pitch, the quality of the possession,
07:00going from front to back, it's something we don't see.
07:02So that ability to find players between holes is always very difficult to fill.
07:07And we're a very aggressive team.
07:09And one thing I will say today, for as much as we can see the opportunities
07:12and goals of the opposition, I thought we should stick to some of our principles.
07:16We will go away from this and make sure that we're better because of it.
07:20And some of our players' attitude and their mentality, they will want to learn.
07:27But some of our players are still incredibly young as well,
07:29and getting young Will on, a Man City fan, that's what's made his day,
07:34and it's made our day, and it just shows you again, not just the first team,
07:38our academy, how hard we're working behind the scenes
07:41to make this football club a better football club.
07:44Excuse me.
07:49Perfect.
07:50Thank you, take care.