THE psychology of modern football is unquestionably centred around the 'Can do' model of thinking. At every level of the game, players are told they can achieve anything if they put their mind to it.

An opposition striker has scored 20 goals this season - doesn't matter if you concentrate on making your tackles and winning your headers. A visiting centre-half has just been called up for the England squad - doesn't matter because you're a better player than he is any day.

The ploy obviously has its merits. But it's all-pervading nature has meant that footballers often don't realise when they're slipping into the psycho-babble that has been drummed into them in countless bonding sessions and motivational talks.

Blame and criticism are anathema to this mode of thought. It's not that you've done something wrong, it's that injuries have conspired against you, or factors beyond your control have adversely affected your display.

Unless, of course, you are Laurent Robert. Newcastle's flamboyant Frenchman is different in almost everything he does, so it should come as no surprise to learn that he eschews pointless platitudes to tell things like they really are.

When Graeme Souness again questioned Robert's defensive abilities last week, most players would have responded with a shrug of the shoulders and a bland claim that they were improving with every game.

Not Robert. The 29-year-old's flaws could see him left out this evening's UEFA Cup clash in Olympiacos despite his match-winning display against Liverpool last weekend but, rather than hide them, he would rather face them head on and accept that there are things he might always struggle to master.

"I got a yellow card on Saturday, so maybe my tackling isn't very good," said Robert, with the kind of honesty that is all too rare in the modern game. "In fact, I know it is not good. I am not a very good defender.

"It is the part of my game that I find the hardest. I keep getting yellow cards when I try to tackle and it is no good for the team if I am getting booked all the time.

"But I have to keep trying to defend for the team and I know I have to get back and work hard.

"It helps me that Newcastle have good defenders who are playing very well, but I wouldn't pretend that defending was the best part of my game."

Sir Bobby Robson famously claimed that getting the best out of Robert was the hardest task he had faced in more than two decades of football management, and Souness is finding that the Reunion Islander is the personification of the stereotypical curate's egg. Good in parts and bad in parts, Robert has the ability to win a game in one second and then throw it away again in his next move.

But, since Christmas, he has undoubtedly been integral to a change-around in form that has taken the Magpies to the latter stages of two cup competitions and revived the possibility of European qualification via the league.

That looked a long way off during Newcastle's last European trip but, after coming off the bench to spearhead a second-half revival in Heerenveen, much to the delight of the supporters who had been constantly singing his name, Robert has finally shaken off the torpor that had characterised many of his displays in the first half of the campaign.

"It is great for me to hear the supporters chanting my name," said Robert. "It gets inside my head.

"There are times when I have been unhappy because I have not been playing, but the fans have been singing my name and that has been good for me.

"In Holland, they did it when I was on the bench and we were losing. I came on in the second half, Newcastle ended up winning the game and we have not looked back since.

"The fans helped me get through a difficult period. It was difficult for everyone. Newcastle were not winning and people were down about it. There has been a quick turn-around though, because now the team is playing as well as at any time during the season."

That improvement has changed perspectives and altered minds. Instead of worrying about limping through to May, the Magpies are homing in on two cup finals and looking forward to a final push up the Premiership.

And, instead of considering his future at St James' Park, Robert is urging Newcastle's board to open contract talks that would tie him to the North-East for the rest of his days.

His current contract expires at the end of next season and, after watching compatriot Olivier Bernard leave Tyneside in January, the midfielder is desperate to get his future sorted before it is too late.

"I would love to start contract talks as soon as possible," confirmed Bernard. "Why not now? My football here is pleasurable. Newcastle are playing well and I am as happy as any time in my career.

"I want to stay because I love the club and the area.

I feel good about the supporters and I love the city and would prefer to stay here.

"My children speak English better than me and are even talking with a Geordie accent!"

There is one thing, though, that would make this new-found contentment complete. Robert might have won a Confederations Cup with France and a Youth Cup at Paris St Germain but, when it comes to meaningful silverware, he cannot boast the medals to match his undoubted flair.

"I want to win something," he revealed. "I came to Newcastle because I wanted to help them win their first trophy for ages. We came so close in the UEFA Cup last season and it would be nice to go on better this time.

"I think we are capable of doing just that."

Perhaps Robert is not immune to the 'Can Do' philosophy after all