"European football suits me" - Dundalk's Robbie Benson

Robbie Benson feels the extended European experience coupled with last years disappointment of being knocked out by Rosenborg as a driving factor towards a extended European run similar to that of 2016 with Dundalk FC. 

The Dundalk midfielder has played a vital role in the success of Dundalk since his signing in 2016 and he hopes to continue to do so as Dundalk head into a massive week as they prepare to face AEK Larnaca. 

“It’s more so for me the disappointment from last year (getting knocked out by Rosenborg), being so close to beating a great team and going out, that feeling is not nice. 

“The campaigns are special and you really want them to last as long as possible. And we are lucky we haven’t played in a game where we have been beaten out the gate, on the pitch you know its going to end. We know we are going to give any team a right good go. We want it, the fans want it, the staff want it and hopefully we can keep this run going as long as possible.”

With Benson being involved in now fewer than 14 European games in his spell at Dundalk, the experience of playing at a level higher than the SSE Airtricity League is something the Athlone native relishes. 

“The more games in Europe you play the better, the more experience you have and thats all the better. I like playing in those games, the European style kind of suits me, our possession way of football and our skilful players come to the fore. League of Ireland games can be very hectic, you need to have a calm head and be relaxed. We need to improve on that we were a little bit hectic and frantic in the second half (against Levadia) and we kind of played into their hands. You get a little bit nervous when the tie is in the balance and you want it so much and you know how disappointed the team will be, the whole crowd and the management team if it slips away so its a bit natural so we will have to fight against that and improve on that in the next week.”

With AEK Larnaca coming to Dundalk on Thursday, Benson knows the team will have to be at their best to take on a side that has players with La Liga experience. He stressed the importance of the crowd getting behind the side as they face a tactical and technical test of resolve. Following the goal conceded on Thursday its as if the life was sucked out of Oriel Park as that could be felt on the pitch.

“There was a bit of a nervous energy about the place,” recalled Benson after the goal. “The players giving the ball away cheaply and it’s feeding off the fans and the fans were groaning a bit. It’s a bit of a two way street in that sense that everyone was getting a little bit frustrated and nervous. We need the crowd to be in full voice next week and really put Larnaca out of their comfort zone and show them they are in a right game here. They came here last year to Cork, they were professional and won 1-0 they are a right good side.”