The Blues return to league action as we host Manchester United at Kingsmeadow tomorrow (Friday) evening, with kick-off at 7pm. It is the Under-21s’ second match since the winter break, following Tuesday’s 1-1 draw with Valencia in the Premier League International Cup.

There was a youthful look to the line-up against the Spaniards due to a combination of injuries and several players being involved with our men’s team, including Alfie Gilchrist and Michael Golding, who have made their senior debuts since Christmas.

And Robinson has confirmed that could be the case again tomorrow, with changes likely.

‘With all the games we’ve been playing and the way we’ve progressed some of the players to the first team – which is obviously really positive – the preparation time has been minimal.

‘So we realise sometimes the performances might not be as cohesive as they could be, but we feel that the lads are set up really well and now it’s down to them to get the results.

‘Again we’ll be very young, probably even younger, because we’ve got to freshen up a bit, with a few players who’ve come back from injury who won’t be able to start again so soon. That’s great, it’s an exciting challenge, but I’m looking for a good performance with not quite so much naivety as we’ve shown in some games recently.’

It is the latter point that Robinson is focusing on with his players in the limited time they’ve had to prepare for tomorrow’s game since the draw with Valencia.

That match against the Spaniards continued a disappointing trend of failing to see out a win after taking the lead, with some poor decision-making causing us to concede possession in dangerous areas and allow our opponents back into the game.

‘It’s been a bit of a continuing theme. It’s around 15 points we’ve dropped from winning positions now and a lot of those have been down to game management,’ explained Robinson.

‘With a young group that can happen, but we need to start seeing some progress and they’re recognising that, so we’ll certainly be looking for a step up if we take the lead against Man United.

‘That is their next step. Everyone makes mistakes, and that’s fine, but when it comes to decision-making, individually and collectively, they’ve got to start showing that game understanding to know what getting three points looks like.

‘We have seen some progression already, we just want to see more. Individually we’re seeing better performances and collectively we are seeing progression, we just want them to start understanding what winning games of football can look like, that it’s not always perfect.

‘We certainly want to see a good performance, but sometimes it’s just about managing the game and doing the right thing, getting across the line, so we also want to see that they understand that.’

It is clear where Robinson would like his team to show improvement, then. Hopefully he will get to see it during a victory over Manchester United in our next Under-21s match on Friday evening.