NafisaRangers arrived in Aberdeen desperate for a response.
After their humiliating European exit to Jablonec on penalties had left Derek McInnes under huge pressure, the trip to Pittodrie represented an opportunity to steady the ship and finally get their Premiership campaign moving.
And that is exactly what happened.
Lawrence Shankland’s 69th-minute penalty proved enough to hand Rangers a precious 1-0 victory and their first league win of the season. Djeidi Gassama was brought down by Dan Happe inside the box, allowing Shankland to step up and send the goalkeeper the wrong way.
For McInnes, it was a hugely important result.
For Aberdeen, however, the afternoon ended in frustration, particularly after two major VAR incidents involving Kevin Nisbet.
The first came after Nisbet went down inside the Rangers penalty area following a tussle with Dujon Sterling. Aberdeen appealed for a spot-kick, but referee Matthew MacDermid waved away the claims and VAR did not intervene.
Then came the moment that really sent Pittodrie into disbelief.
With Aberdeen chasing an equaliser late on, Nisbet appeared to have rescued a point when he headed home following a frantic sequence inside the Rangers box.
But after a VAR review, MacDermid was sent to the monitor and the goal was eventually ruled out for a push by Nisbet on Sterling in the build-up.
Aberdeen were left furious.
Robinson, however, knew exactly what could happen if he openly criticised the officials.
And his response has now raised eyebrows.
Asked to give his honest assessment of the decisions, the Aberdeen boss admitted he was holding back because he feared the Scottish FA could come down heavily on him.
“If I could give my thoughts, but the authorities make sure we don’t give our thoughts,” Robinson said.
“If you hear it from me, I’ll get a six-game ban, and I can’t control decisions.”
The comments have quickly become one of the biggest talking points to emerge from the match.
Robinson did not actually confirm that he had been handed a six-match suspension. Instead, he was warning that speaking too openly about the decisions could potentially result in a lengthy punishment.
The Aberdeen manager went on to question how the level of force could apparently be interpreted differently in the two incidents.
“I can’t control what VAR sees as not enough force and too much force,” he said.
“You all saw the game and the only thing I can comment on is I don’t know who judges the amount of force.
“There wasn’t enough for Kevin to get a penalty and there was enough to disallow the goal.”
That was as close as Robinson came to openly challenging the decisions.
He insisted that the two incidents appeared similar to him, while accepting that he was not a referee and did not want to risk being removed from the dugout.
“Someone has made that decision rightly or wrongly and it certainly affects the game,” Robinson added.
“They seemed quite similar to me but I’m not a referee.”
The comments have inevitably fuelled the debate surrounding Rangers’ victory.
Chris Sutton has already taken aim at Robinson’s assessment of the match, arguing that Aberdeen did not do enough to justify claims that they had taken the game to Rangers.
Kris Boyd, meanwhile, backed the decision to award Rangers their penalty, describing the Gassama incident as a clear spot-kick.
But Robinson’s reluctance to go any further could prove just as interesting as the controversy itself.
There is currently no confirmed Scottish FA suspension for Robinson arising from Sunday’s match. His “six-game ban” comment was a warning about what he believed could happen if he gave his full opinion, rather than an announcement that he had actually been punished. The Scottish FA’s published disciplinary updates do not currently list a Robinson sanction relating to the Rangers match.
That distinction is important.
What is beyond dispute is that the defeat leaves Aberdeen with just three points from their opening three Premiership fixtures, while Rangers finally have their first league victory of the campaign.
And Robinson now has very little time to dwell on it.
Aberdeen’s next assignment is a trip to Celtic Park on Wednesday, meaning the Dons must quickly put the Pittodrie controversy behind them.
Whether Robinson’s comments eventually attract the attention of the Scottish FA remains to be seen.
For now, though, his biggest concern is simply getting his team ready for Celtic — while hoping he can stay on the touchline rather than watching from the stands.
Nafisa
