Worst start in a decade has ‘Well rock bottom
CELTIC ....................................................... 3 MOTHERWELL ........................................ 0
Paul Thomson
Motherwell boss Stephen Robinson insists his side expected to get a result at Celtic Park and were left ruing first half chances that could have delivered their first league win of the season.
Goals from James Forrest, Albian Ajeti and Christopher Juillien gave the Hoops all three points on Sunday, leaving Motherwell bottom of the table with just two points from six games.
It’s the Steelmen’s worse start to a league campaign since Stuart McCall’s side managed just a point from their first six outings in 2010/11.
But Robinson was pleased with his side’s first-half display in which Liam Grimshaw, Chris Long and Tony Watt were all denied by Celtic keeper Vasilis Barkas. The Steelmen also defended resolutely before Forrest broke the deadlock in the 40th minute with the hosts’ first shot on target.
And the Fir Park boss admits his side were left gutted by the result, as they believed they would take something from the champions.
Robinson said: “The boys did what I asked them to do first half and they are disappointed.
“We actually expected to come and get a result. There was no case of us thinking we would come here and just turn up. The result might look like that, but we tried a system that would allow us to come and counter attack.
“At times I thought we looked decent in the first half and you’ve got to take those chances at Celtic Park.
“We didn’t and we got punished for it. “Ultimately, we lost the game to a better side.”
It’s now four defeats in six games for Robinson’s men. And while he admits results haven’t been good enough so far, he believes the international break will allow his squad the chance to work on turning their season around.
He added: “Performances in general, I’ve been relatively pleased with.
“There’s a lot of good points, a lot of good stuff, but I’m judged on results and we haven’t go the results we wanted, there’s no point hiding away from that.
“It’s been small margins that have cost us and we’ve been punished for that.
“We’re hoping that if we keep working hard and keep improving things over this two-week break that those small margins will start going our way.
“We have to be more clinical at both ends of the ground and I’m convinced things will turn out.”