BY ALAN TEMPLE – @CCP_Sport
TONY WATT will be forced to “cry, sweat and apologise” if he wants to salvage his Charlton Athletic career, according to tough-talking boss Karl Robinson.
The Scotland internationalist has returned to The Valley after new Hearts head coach Ian Cathro cut his loan deal short, having scored one goal in 17 appearances for the Jambos in the first half of the season.
Despite a positive start to his stint at Tynecastle – winning an international recall for the World Cup qualifier against Malta in September – the former Celtic starlet’s form tailed off badly and he had slipped down the pecking order in Gorgie.
Watt, still only 22, joined the Addicks in January 2015 but has failed to cement a first-team place amid questions regarding his attitude and application, and was farmed out to Blackburn and Cardiff before arriving in Edinburgh.
Asked whether Watt could still play a part in Charlton’s League One promotion push, Robinson pulled no punches and hinted that the player has been responsible for indiscretions in the past.
“What is going to happen with Tony Watt is that he is going to come in and I’m going to run the legs off of him,” Robinson told Charlton’s official website. “I’m going to make him sweat, make him cry. I want to see whether he has got the desire to play for me and this club.
“That is the top and bottom of it. There have been a lot of questions about Tony, his mentality and desire, but no-one in this football world has ever questioned his talent.
“Tony has to come back an apologise for certain things and then endear himself to the fans and to me and to the club. If you want to play football, come to a club with great young players, great fans and a great desire to improve and be better.
“I want him to prove that he can be one of the best players in this league. He’s got to come back for testing and, within that, we’ll see if he has got the application to be here.”
