Barry Robson spoke to RedTV this week. The manager reflected on the 2022/2023 campaign and also looked ahead to pre-season.

“First and foremost, we got the team going again, got the team back to where we wanted to be. There was a lot of hard work, a lot of detail went in, all the staff and the players – everyone responded to it well and we managed to secure a third-place finish, and hopefully the group stages in Europe, depending on what happens this weekend.

“All in all, really pleased with from where we were and where we got to. Credit to the players. And credit to the fans. Over the past three months Pittodrie has been getting full again – it has been brilliant. That is what the club is all about. When we have that, we become a much bigger force and in some of the games when we did not play so well, the fans got us over the line. That is important, we need that because you are not going to be at your best ever single game, every single week. The supporters can give you 10-12 points a season by bringing the players with them.

“In any organisation, any football club – everyone needs to know what we are doing and where we are going. Everyone needs to know where we are taking the club and we managed to do that. You become a much better force with all the fans, all the players, all the staff thinking in the same direction.

“What I said right away when I went in was that I demand high standards. And that is everywhere – whether it is being on time to how you perform on the pitch. How you perform off the pitch is important. And that is not just to the players, that includes all the staff as well. There are no easy days. There are no lazy days. When people are here, they are here to work. We are here to perform to the best of our ability every day, wherever we are.

“I made that clear, right away. It is what I expect from everyone including myself. When you do that you can strive to do well and punch above your weight.

“Signing new players, it does take time to get deals over the line, and it has to be the right type of player. It is not just a case of seeing a player and going and signing him. You have to look into a lot of things. But we pride ourselves as being a good club, a progressive club and we try and sell that to any targets that we have got.

“Ideally, we would like everyone to be there for the start of pre-season but at any club in the UK, that will not be the case, even the top clubs. We need to wait to get the right people in. We will try and get those deals done as quickly as we can but sometimes you have to wait for after pre-season for some of the players that you have targeted.”