Charlie Robinson: The Story So Far

After a couple of excellent seasons across our Under-18 and Under-21 age groups, highly talented young centre-back Charlie Robinson spoke to fulhamfc.com about his successes and struggles over the years.

How are you doing?

I'm all good thanks. It’s been a bit strange recently having no league games, because if I'm honest they're probably more competitive. We've got Premier League Cup games still going on at the moment and we’re doing really well in our group.

I’m still getting plenty of good work done, so it's not too bad.

You’ve been at Fulham since Under-9s. How much have you enjoyed your journey through our Academy so far?

 It feels like it’s been such a long time, but it's been really positive the whole way through.

A lot of the coaches that I had even back then are still around now. Andrew Watt is still here and Andrew Joslin has also progressed through the ranks at the Club alongside me, which is nice.

You start to get to know everyone and you feel like a part of the furniture here.

When did you first realise that football was what you wanted to pursue?

I remember when I first got scouted for the Development Centre and at that point I didn't even own a pair of football boots. I thought, I might as well just go down there and see what it's about. I never played Sunday League or anything like that, so this was essentially my first step onto the ladder.

My parents and brother always liked football and we always watched it at home. There was never really a time when I was like, ‘this is what I want to do.’ I just gradually progressed through.

Whilst growing up in Brixton, where you still live today, how supportive were your parents when it came to your football development?

Really, really supportive. They always were interested in football like I said, and my dad would always drive me to training and sometimes he’d even take a few of the other players if they otherwise couldn’t get there. My mum was great as well. She’d watch whenever she could and they still come to my games now as often as they can.

Some parents can be quite intense but mine didn’t ever put pressure on me to do things, it was all about choosing to do it because I enjoyed it. They were great to lean on throughout and you got all the pressure from the coaches and players, so in my opinion you didn’t need that from your family as well.

You’ve blossomed into an excellent young centre-back. Has defending always been your passion or did you play in any different positions as a younger boy?

I mean, they shoved me at centre-back pretty much right from the start because I was unusually tall! I played in midfield for a little bit which probably helped me out more than I realised, but if I’m honest I didn’t particularly enjoy it.

It helped me to develop other areas of my game which I’m grateful for, but I feel I’ve done well at centre-back since.

You won our Scholar of the Year award at the end of last season. It must have been a great feeling to know that your hard work on and off the pitch was being rewarded?

I didn't really know too much about the award before, but I was aware that Ollie O’Neill had previously won it. I saw it as a nice bonus after a really good season at the Club. I didn't expect it. 

You’re an intelligent lad, how much do you value your education away from football?

I definitely value the education side of things as well. It's really important to have something there on the side because none of us have done much in professional football yet, so you never know about the setbacks that can happen. Having an education and other interests can have a huge benefit.

That intelligence transfers onto the pitch and helps you get out of difficult situations regularly. Is positioning and general reading of the game something you’re always working on?

I feel like being able to read the game is a big strength of mine and it has needed to be because I was never the quickest or the most physical player. It helps me always remain one step ahead and get out of certain situations. It keeps me in check if you like.

I often look back at games and identify areas I need to improve. I think another strength is my ability to learn quickly and improve those areas for the next match.

You’ve said in the past that Connor McAvoy was a player in the Academy you looked up to. Now you’re often seen playing alongside him! What was it about Connor that impressed you?

He’s got a similar personality to me and he went to Coombes school as well like myself.

Even back in training sessions at school, he was always a good professional and he’s a ball playing centre-half like myself. I always thought we had similarities in our game and I feel like it's being shown now when we play alongside each other. We're quite good at progressing the ball as a two.

You made it onto the First Team bench along with some other Academy players against Crawley. How much did you enjoy travelling with the senior squad?

It’s definitely all very sudden! You go from knowing very little to all of a sudden, they’ve asked you to train with them. You’re aware that there’s a game the next day so you’re always wondering whether maybe you’ll be involved.

Then you kind of work it out throughout the session that you're going to be involved which is a really exciting feeling. I got a text in the afternoon which was basically the squad list forwarded on. I was absolutely buzzing.

In terms of the actual experience on the day, it was really good. It was obviously a shame that we got knocked out because you think that those opportunities could potentially come up again.

Any First Team players in particular that made you feel comfortable?

I feel like there's some players that get mentioned quite a lot. People like Harrison Reed and Tim Ream are great. They’re really good at that because they're quite experienced players and they know what it feels like, but in general everyone was brilliant.

Some players really go the extra mile just to make sure that the things you do well get praised, which really helps players like myself and other young players to build confidence along the way.

What elements of being a footballer do you feel you struggle most with?

Opinions matter so much within football and sometimes there are maybe too many. If you think someone has a bad opinion of you, it can spiral in your head. Every now and then you might get some feedback from a coach or a player which isn’t as good and you can let it play out in your head and overthink.

There’s also the aspect of balancing everything. As a young player, you’re still doing education, I was doing driving lessons for ages and a lot of it is just about timing things. You’ll think to yourself, I need to get better at this, this and this but then you realise you have a game in two days and you need to fit it all in.

A lot of my aims are gym based. We train in the mornings and then I need to make sure I get everything done in the gym afterwards. I need to get bigger and stronger and fill out a bit.

A lot of people think footballers come in at 10am and leave at 2pm. There are some that might do that, but those players aren’t going to be as good as they possibly could be. Some might take the easy route but you should want to do as much as you physically can to make sure you stay in the game for as long as possible.

Social media is another area that can potentially be damaging. The World Cup is a perfect example. When some of our lads missed their penalties at the Euros, the abuse they got was horrific. Those players are scoring goals now and it seems to have all been forgotten. Dealing with that can be really difficult.

Thankfully, I haven’t had to deal with that too much yet but I’m aware that it’s something that comes with success.

What is the number one piece of advice you’d give to a young player looking to develop themself as a footballer?

I’d probably say that things can change quickly, for better or for worse. For players that are struggling or are looking to get into a club, all of a sudden somebody could be at your game watching you and then the next thing you know you’ve got a trial and you’re in the team, just like that.

Unfortunately, it can go the other way. Things might be going really well and you suffer a nasty injury, touch wood! Or you could make one mistake, especially as a defender, and opinions can change.

If things are going well or badly, you need to always stay grounded and balanced.

Christmas is fast approaching, and you’ll have a break in games. What does a typical Christmas look like for you?

For us, Christmas is alright for now. Obviously if you’re in the First Team you’ve got the game Boxing Day so you’re in on Christmas morning.

To get five or six days off is quite nice and I’ll just try to switch off from it all a little bit and make the most out of being at home with my family. I really like this time of year and I think it’s a great time to settle down and enjoy the Christmas dinner more than anything!

I’ll be eating as much as I can to get a bit bigger.