Motherwell caretaker manager Stephen Robinson admits it was difficult stepping into the shoes of the man who brought him back to Fir Park eight days earlier.

But Robinson revealed Mark McGhee encouraged him to take the reins immediately after he was sacked on Tuesday.

Robinson returned as first-team coach after a brief spell as Oldham manager and was shocked when McGhee lost his job days after a 5-1 home defeat by Dundee.

Read more: Exclusive: Former Motherwell boss Ian Baraclough touts current Fir Park No.2 Steve Robinson to take over from axed gaffer Mark McGhee

"It was very difficult," the 42-year-old said. "In truth, I didn't see it coming. I agreed to come back until the end of the season and then look at a couple of options that I knew would be in the mix at the end of the season.

"It's taken everybody a little bit by surprise. I spoke to Mark afterwards and his thoughts were: 'Go and take the game and do the best you can with it'."

Robinson is in charge for Saturday's Ladbrokes Premiership encounter at Kilmarnock and has not looked far beyond that.

It is understood the club have started sounding out some potential candidates but will not begin drawing up a shortlist this week.

Robinson said: "I came to help Mark out and I agreed to take the game on Saturday and see where we go with it.

"Let's get Saturday out the way and then I will sit down with (chief operating officer) Alan Burrows and the board and we will see my thoughts and their thoughts.

"They asked me to take the team for Saturday and that's as much discussion as we have had."

Read more: Exclusive: Former Motherwell boss Ian Baraclough touts current Fir Park No.2 Steve Robinson to take over from axed gaffer Mark McGhee

Robinson got just six months at Oldham after leaving his role as McGhee's assistant. His predecessor, John Sheridan, replaced him in January and the club's transfer embargo was lifted four days after his exit.

"I have to be very careful what I say but what I will say is I went down and we had three players," Robinson said.

"I signed 23 players in three-and-a-half weeks with a transfer embargo on us.

"It was a very short spell to try and turn a football club around and rebuild it completely.

"It was a massive job that needed time and obviously I didn't get that amount of time. But you deal with that, I have no hard feelings with Oldham. You move on, that's modern-day football unfortunately, time isn't given.

"But I have learned a lot of lessons and I think recruitment is absolutely massive to being successful and being organised and a solid base to build on. You live and learn from every experience."

Robinson's experience at the Sky Bet League One club has not affected his desire to be a manager again.

Read more: Exclusive: Former Motherwell boss Ian Baraclough touts current Fir Park No.2 Steve Robinson to take over from axed gaffer Mark McGhee

"Not at all," he said. "I think there were exceptional circumstances at Oldham. I certainly know the club is in a heck of a lot better shape than what I went into. By the end of it, we were three points off safety with two games in hand."

Robinson has told his players they have to move on from the "sombre" mood of Tuesday.

"When you take them on the training pitch, they forget about everything and they have been great this week, as they had been," he added.

"Mark said as well their attitude was not in question, it was more individual errors and conceding goals."

The latter issue is Robinson's main concern ahead of the trip to Rugby Park.

"The facts are there for themselves, we have conceded 27 goals in 10 games and won one of them," he said.

"We have to stop conceding goals, so we have worked a lot this week on shape and team play.

"But you can just get them together. If you don't do the basics right, which is winning headers, tackles and second balls, and having that desire to really win football matches, then it doesn't matter who sits in the hot seat. We have to get that 10 per cent extra."