The Motherwell boss spoke about managing expectations and competition for places, ahead of the Ladbrokes Premiership starting at Livingston on Saturday.
Here’s what Stephen Robinson said to the press on Friday morning.
On the season’s aspirations
“My aim is we try and win every single game. No matter who we are are playing, whether it’s Celtic, Livingston, St Mirren, it doesn’t matter.
“It doesn’t always work out like that, of course. But I think we are positive.
“I don’t set real targets. Yeah we do within the coaching staff, we do within the privacy of the dressing room.
“We don’t go shouting our mouths off about what we want to achieve. I think you take it step by step, and then see where you can get to by Christmas time.”
“You’ve seen what we’ve done early on when i was managing. Playing in a style that got us to two cup finals, which was putting balls into the box, getting down the sides of people.
“It was physical at times but that suited the players we had and the players we were able to recruit.
“We’ve done that differently since Christmas. We’ve brought in four wide players. We’ve got a lot of pace. A lot of energy.
“A lot of good, good footballers in the team. We’ve got boys that supplement what we already had.
“I think it will be an exciting brand of football. We will lose games as well, of course. But it will be by being positive.”
On managing expectations
“Expectation is the biggest thing to manage in football.
“First and foremost, we have to stay in the division.That’s our primary aim.
“Within the dressing room and coaching staff, we’ve got bigger aims than that. Much bigger aims than that.
“But we just have to temper that slightly. Take each game as it comes. It’s an old saying. It bores the life out of all you press people, I know.
“But we just have to try and win each game that we go onto the field with.”
On competition for places
“I think there’s a freshness about it. When I first took over, I had to shake it up a little bit. Then that season we got to the cup finals.
“It gives a freshness. You’re not hearing the same thing every day or working with the same people. There’s a real freshness. There’s an energy.
“It’s a young and enthusiastic squad. So it is something to be excited by.
“They are all happy now because they’ve all had games and we’ve been able to move things about and give everybody equal game time.It’s worked well for us but I have to do that.
“Any successful team and squad you have to rotate in modern football now.
“The pace of it. We only go with 20/21 outfield players. So we don’t have a big squad.
“You’re either in the squad or on the bench. Not many players miss out each week. Maybe a couple of the younger squad members.
“So people just have to get used to that. You’re going to be at a football club where you are one of two people fighting for a position.
“There’s not many clubs in the Premiership, or at any other level, where you are going to get that sort of guarantee.
“We’ve got a good squad, a good mentality. People are well aware they are going to have to fight for positions and I will pick who is playing well.”
On Livingston
” I expect very similar [from Livingston]. I think Gary is doing a tremendous job.
“They play to their strengths. They’ve had criticism for it and I don’t think they should have done. I think it’s good management.
“When you’ve got players who put a lot of balls into your box and make you run towards your own goal. They win second balls and are aggressive. And they play more football than people give them credit for.
“So I think they will be the exact same this season. It’s been successful for them.
“We have to match that enthusiasm and endeavour and physicality before we can start trying to play football.”