Interview: Motherwell defender Bevis Mugabi "certain" club's fortunes will improve this season

Mugabi (25) and his team-mates, who lost 3-0 at Celtic Park on their last outing before the international break, prop up the Scottish Premiership with just two points from six matches ahead of this Saturday's crucial home league encounter against St Johnstone.

Mugabi said: “We’ve been working very hard in training during the international break.

“The players that haven’t been playing need to get a bit more game time, a bit more fitness.

“It has been a tough week to be honest with you.

“The gaffer (Stephen Robinson) has just been trying to implement the stuff that he wants from us.

“There’s no panic stations, everyone’s pretty calm in and around the club because we know in the games we’ve been a bit unfortunate with the results.

“It’s not like we’ve been playing horribly bad or being outplayed every single time.

“We just need to keep on working hard in training.

“To be fair I’ve had a few chances myself. I could have had at least two goals myself.

“It’s not just the strikers, everyone’s got a part to blame. I’m sure it’s going to turn sooner or later 100 per cent, because of the way that we’ve been training and playing it’s bound to come.

“It just takes one or two wins and we’re literally in the top six again.

“I know we’re more than capable of being in the top six, it’s just a matter of timing.”

When asked to identify his footballing hero from when he was a kid, Mugabi had no hesitation in saying legendary former Leeds United, Manchester United and England centre back Rio Ferdinand.

“Rio became my hero when I started playing centre back,” he added. “He had great composure on the ball, we have a similar build, his aggression, his calmness and his passion for the game in general.

“He played until his mid 30s so he is hopefully a prime example of somebody I could hopefully be as good as and push myself to be at that level.”

Unlike the English Premier League down south, the Scottish Premiership does not yet have VAR technology to help officials during matches but Mugabi is not a fan of it.

“Sometimes the VAR leads to the right decision,” he said.

“But it keeps people in suspense, there’s the time wasting when it happens in the Premier League with people just standing around and the game loses momentum.

“It slows everything down.

“And it’s ridiculous if your big toe’s offside, just give the goal!

“There’s so many loopholes and so many questions that need to be answered in the whole VAR system.

“Hopefully in a couple of years it will be more clear.”

Mugabi, who is currently living in a flat in Hamilton, has fulfilled his lifetime ambition by becoming a professional footballer but he is already planning for life beyond his playing days.

“I’ve always wanted to be a footballer,” he added. “But at the age I’m at now I know that football doesn’t last forever – I might be retired from playing at 35 if I’m lucky – so you have to have a Plan B.

“I’m currently working on that at the moment. I’m trying to get into property development with my older brother.

“We are considering buying property in Scotland because it is a lot cheaper than London.”