The Responsibility of Management

Karl Robinson talks to the LMA about the onward progression of his MK Dons side, and their prospects of making it to the npower Championship this season.

How do you view your development as a manager since your appointment at MK Dons?

“Well I know I’ve aged an awful lot and put weight on! [Laughs] But joking aside, I am thoroughly enjoying being a manager. I think that the most important thing when you do this job is to make sure that you don’t get ahead of yourself and become something that you are not. It’s still important to listen to the people who got you to the place you’re at. For me they are the likes of Sam Allardyce at Blackburn Rovers, Steve Heighway at Liverpool’s Academy and Paul Ince, my predecessor here at MK Dons.

“I am one of those characters who is always asking questions of whomever I meet... ‘Why are you doing that?’ ‘How are you doing that?’ I never get bored of learning and I am never going to stand still in my own personal development.

“I believe that by keeping your feet on the ground, being yourself and doing the right things by your players and your staff, that you can obtain success. It’s unbelievable to have been given the opportunity to manage so young and I have got to carry on achieving so that I am not seen as just a flash in the pan.”

How conscious were you of your age when you were appointed manager?

“It didn’t bother me one bit. I only ever doubted my age when I had a bit of a confrontation with Tugay when I was at Blackburn Rovers. I was 27 at the time; he was 38 and a bit of a hero of mine as well. We had a confrontation and I stood my ground and he respected that immediately. I think that if you are confident and know what you are talking about then players will listen to you, follow you and support what you are doing.”

You had a strong coaching foundation before you got the opportunity to manage; how important has that been in helping you succeed in management? 

“I feel that I prepared well to go into coaching and management. I did all my coaching qualifications and got my UEFA Pro Licence at 29. I coached every level from Under-8 teams to Under-18s, worked with reserve sides and at clubs from npower League Two up to the Barclays Premier League. So there’s not an area within the industry that I have not coached in.

“That experience has stood me in good stead going forward. I have had to change though because when you step up from a coach to a manager you’ve got to become a different type of person around the dressing room. Your leadership qualities have got to come through a lot more. You have got to be the person that people rely on, and if you don’t do your job right you know you will have let the fans, the Chairman and the players down. I love that responsibility and I will never let anyone down - that’s just how I am made.

“So I enjoy being a leader but I have very good people around me who support everything that I am trying to do.”

What type of manager are you; what is your style of management?

“I’m very open, honest and straight to the point. I am thorough and I don’t leave anything to chance. I love coaching and that’s my strength.

“Having worked under Sam Allardyce at Blackburn I am very big on analysis too. In addition, I’m very supportive of my staff and my players and I like to think that they know that there is nothing I won’t do for them. I believe that it is important when I am asking my players to climb over mountains and push barriers further and further that they are able to look at me and think ‘well he does that for me so I will do that for him.’”