TrueYid
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- Jul 29, 2003
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Paul Robinson last night revealed his relief at ending his Tottenham nightmare.
The keeper says the last six months have been the toughest of his career as he was axed by Juande Ramos and lost his position as England's No.1 to David James.
He claims he had to quit White Hart Lane for the sake of his career and hopes his £3.5million move to Blackburn can relaunch him.
"It is a relief to be out of there," he admitted. "It's nice to be wanted again. It was tough and when you have a bit of a dip in form, you need the people around you to believe in you.
"I had four years at Tottenham. Three-and-a-half of them were very good, but it's been a really difficult last six months. Things happen in football, people have different opinions and you either fit into people's plans or you don't.
"It was probably not long after Juande Ramos came in that I knew. He made his ideas and plans quite clear. The most disappointing time was when I missed the Carling Cup Final against Arsenal. You always want to play in the big games.
"I don't think I could have carried on at Tottenham. I could have stayed and seen out my contract, but I know I would not have started the season.
"I'm just delighted to be at Blackburn and to start training again with a new focus."
Robinson's humiliating treatment by Ramos has made him determined to prove his critics wrong and he claims he has got his hunger back.
"Definitely, I've got something to prove - 100 per cent," he said. "I've got that little bit of hunger back which maybe was missing over the last couple of years.
"There's a bit of fire back in me. I've trained harder over the summer than I have for a while.
"I want to go out there and do myself justice. I've had a rough ride for six months but I've never doubted my own ability
"For me this is a great opportunity to get myself back to the level where I want to be. I've got a focus now and I know where my football is going to be played."
One of Robinson's prime targets is to win back the England No.1 jersey from James.
Former Leeds star Robinson has yet to play under new national boss Fabio Capello.
"I feel I can be England's No.1 again," he said. "I'm 28, I have 42 caps already. I still believe the best years of my career lie ahead of me, so I don't see any reason why I can't add to those caps.
"I'm determined to grab this chance at Blackburn and get back into the England squad."
Robinson, 28, will replace former Rovers stalwart Brad Friedel in goal and he has begged Rovers fans not to compare him to the American, who has joined Aston Villa.
"Brad Friedel has been an excellent goalkeeper for this club," he said.
"People say to me: How can I fill his boots? But I'm not coming here to be Brad Friedel. I'm coming here to be Paul Robinson and I'm going to show people what I can do."
Robinson has agreed a five-year contract at Ewood Park and is excited about the prospect of working with Paul Ince.
He had never met the new Rovers boss before he spoke to him this week and was attracted by his desire to succeed.
"I spoke to Paul Ince for about 20 minutes and what came across during our chat is that he wants to achieve the same kind of things that I want to achieve," he said.
"I think he got the idea from my meeting with the chairman that I have something to prove and it just seems to me that he also has something to prove.
"This is a big challenge - I'm really looking forward to the new season."
Robinson refused to see his move from the Carling Cup winners as a step down and believes he can reach Europe with Blackburn.
"This is a great opportunity for me," he said. "Look at the league - Rovers finished higher than Tottenham last season. Look at the players Spurs are losing and it's going to be a rebuilding job for them.
"There's no reason why we can't push on. The manager has his ideas and ambitions and with the players he's bringing in, the future looks exciting. There's no reason why - maybe not this season - we can't push for a European place.
"I've come to this club because I feel it's right for me and that it's moving in the right direction.
"I feel I have come to the best place to fulfil my ambitions at club and country level."
There's a bit of fire back in me. I want to go out there and do myself justice. I've had a rough ride
The keeper says the last six months have been the toughest of his career as he was axed by Juande Ramos and lost his position as England's No.1 to David James.
He claims he had to quit White Hart Lane for the sake of his career and hopes his £3.5million move to Blackburn can relaunch him.
"It is a relief to be out of there," he admitted. "It's nice to be wanted again. It was tough and when you have a bit of a dip in form, you need the people around you to believe in you.
"I had four years at Tottenham. Three-and-a-half of them were very good, but it's been a really difficult last six months. Things happen in football, people have different opinions and you either fit into people's plans or you don't.
"It was probably not long after Juande Ramos came in that I knew. He made his ideas and plans quite clear. The most disappointing time was when I missed the Carling Cup Final against Arsenal. You always want to play in the big games.
"I don't think I could have carried on at Tottenham. I could have stayed and seen out my contract, but I know I would not have started the season.
"I'm just delighted to be at Blackburn and to start training again with a new focus."
Robinson's humiliating treatment by Ramos has made him determined to prove his critics wrong and he claims he has got his hunger back.
"Definitely, I've got something to prove - 100 per cent," he said. "I've got that little bit of hunger back which maybe was missing over the last couple of years.
"There's a bit of fire back in me. I've trained harder over the summer than I have for a while.
"I want to go out there and do myself justice. I've had a rough ride for six months but I've never doubted my own ability
"For me this is a great opportunity to get myself back to the level where I want to be. I've got a focus now and I know where my football is going to be played."
One of Robinson's prime targets is to win back the England No.1 jersey from James.
Former Leeds star Robinson has yet to play under new national boss Fabio Capello.
"I feel I can be England's No.1 again," he said. "I'm 28, I have 42 caps already. I still believe the best years of my career lie ahead of me, so I don't see any reason why I can't add to those caps.
"I'm determined to grab this chance at Blackburn and get back into the England squad."
Robinson, 28, will replace former Rovers stalwart Brad Friedel in goal and he has begged Rovers fans not to compare him to the American, who has joined Aston Villa.
"Brad Friedel has been an excellent goalkeeper for this club," he said.
"People say to me: How can I fill his boots? But I'm not coming here to be Brad Friedel. I'm coming here to be Paul Robinson and I'm going to show people what I can do."
Robinson has agreed a five-year contract at Ewood Park and is excited about the prospect of working with Paul Ince.
He had never met the new Rovers boss before he spoke to him this week and was attracted by his desire to succeed.
"I spoke to Paul Ince for about 20 minutes and what came across during our chat is that he wants to achieve the same kind of things that I want to achieve," he said.
"I think he got the idea from my meeting with the chairman that I have something to prove and it just seems to me that he also has something to prove.
"This is a big challenge - I'm really looking forward to the new season."
Robinson refused to see his move from the Carling Cup winners as a step down and believes he can reach Europe with Blackburn.
"This is a great opportunity for me," he said. "Look at the league - Rovers finished higher than Tottenham last season. Look at the players Spurs are losing and it's going to be a rebuilding job for them.
"There's no reason why we can't push on. The manager has his ideas and ambitions and with the players he's bringing in, the future looks exciting. There's no reason why - maybe not this season - we can't push for a European place.
"I've come to this club because I feel it's right for me and that it's moving in the right direction.
"I feel I have come to the best place to fulfil my ambitions at club and country level."
There's a bit of fire back in me. I want to go out there and do myself justice. I've had a rough ride
