MOTHERWELL youngster Barry Maguire admits he isn't surprised his manager Stephen Robinson is being linked with a string of jobs after revealing the methods that make him so highly-rated.
Maguire is with Scotland Under 21s this week preparing for their crucial Euro 2021 qualifier against Greece in Edinburgh tomorrow. The 21-year-old also played for Motherwell in their weekend defeat at Celtic.
Robinson has been the centre of plenty of recent speculation with Hearts, Hibs and Northern Ireland all linked with a move for the Fir Park manager. And Maguire can see why admiring glances are being cast in the direction of Lanarkshire.
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He said: "It’s understandable why he’s been linked with jobs, it’s not a shock to any of us. The job he’s done at Motherwell with the resources he has is a credit to him and how well he’s done.
"We all want him to stay as he was the one who gave me my chance. I made my debut under him and he's put me in now and again, especially in games like Sunday’s against Celtic. He’s given me a few starts this season so I definitely enjoy playing under him.
"He gives me confidence, when the game is done and you haven’t won then he’s always looking forward to next week. He has different tactics for different teams. He knows how to talk to every individual player. He know how to treat everyone the way they want to be treated and how to get the best out of everybody and that’s a massive positive."
Playing in front of a massive crowd at Celtic Park could faze plenty of younger players. But Maguire revealed he has his own methods for dealing with it.
He said: "I was fine at Celtic Park and it’s difficult to try and explain it. It’s different to being in the stand and watching the game by looking down at the pitch. It’s weird, it’s as though you just zone out from the stands.
"There’s the odd occasion you can hear the crowd and when Celtic scored on Sunday you could hear them erupting. It made it feel very real. But when you’re playing you just zone out. You can’t see or hear anything away from the pitch. It’s as if it’s just you and 10 other players.
"I don’t know if it’s just me that feels that way but it’s as though I have blinkers on. You just don’t notice anything else and maybe that’s just down to the level of concentration. I played for the reserves at Rugby Park against Kilmarnock recently and there were about 50 fans there and it was the exact same. When the ball is out of play you get a split second to take it all in.
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"I want more of that as knowing there are games like the Celtic one, you get a taste and you don’t want that to be the only time you sample it. I want to constantly be out there. I want to play in games like Celtic Park and Ibrox every week."
Scotland could maintain their lead at the top of their group at the halfway point of their qualifiers on Friday and Maguire is sure Scot Gemmill's side can do just that.
He pointed out: "We need to try and keep that run going. If we were to get a win then it would put us in a great position and allow us to end the year on a high as well. We have to stick to the game plan. It’s worked for us so far as we have been doing well.
"It’s a group of young boys who’re getting a lot of experience at first team level and a high level. We all benefit from playing with boys from different levels and from different clubs."
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