Robertson was 'the scruffy fat lad who conquered Europe twice'

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He netted at a World Cup and won a litany of trophies, both as a player and a coach.Robertson featured in BBC Scotland's Icons of Football earlier this year and here those who know him best look back on his illustrious career.'The personification of Clough on the pitch'Jonny Owen, actor, writer, producer and Nottingham Forest non-executive directorYou can imagine what it’s like in Nottingham for John evermore, he is the man that won the European Cup for them the second time.Nottingham Forest’s success in those five years, which is one of the greatest stories in the history of sport let alone football, is absolutely pivotal because of two people in my opinion, Brian Clough and John Robertson.They are the men, on and off the pitch, who are connected, almost.John is the personification of Clough on the pitch, he played the way Clough wanted to play and knew exactly what Clough wanted.There’s no debate, the miracle men [Nottingham Forest’s most successful side] all say our best player was Robertson and they love him for it, there’s not a hint of jealousy.Icons of Football: John RobertsonFeaturing Martin O’Neill, Jonny Owen, Archie Macpherson, Alan Rough, Viv Anderson, Sherrie Hewson, John McGovern, Garry Birtles & John O’Hare18/12/25'A story of hope and inspiration'Mick Wormald, ex-BBC Nottingham broadcaster and journalistThe undoubted star of the show throughout that period of time for Nottingham Forest was Robertson. After all, Robertson was the scruffy little fat lad who conquered all of Europe twice.'Get the ball out to John ASAP'John McGovern, Nottingham Forest team-mateIt was quite easy to see that if you wanted to create something, just get the ball out to Robertson as quickly as possible.Any striker that came to the club knew that once John got the ball out there, they had to get into the penalty box and try get a yard’s difference between you and a defender because he will hit you a ball that is accurate.All good players are consistent, obviously, but John was remarkably consistent.

He’s played his part in footballing history, I think.When you consider the things he’s won in the game, he’s an iconic figure, absolutely.John coming back to Scotland to see his family was a really big thing for him. Very seldom would he have got home and he hears this opportunity to come home as an assistant manager [at Celtic].John really enjoyed his role.

No one could get the ball off of him, then bang, it’s a goal.John was special and became an icon because he had every attribute a footballer should have. He got guidance from Clough, but John had the talent.