Jens Berthel Askou praised his Motherwell players for not letting frustrations get the better of them before edging past St Johnstone 1-0 to reach the Premier Sports Cup last 16.
The Premiership side prevailed in Perth thanks to a goal in the second half of extra-time from Lukas Fadinger.
The Austrian latched onto a clinical Elliot Watt pass to settle a terrific tie and Danish coach Askou is impressed by his team picking up his dynamic, possession-based style so quickly.
They failed to turn dominance into goals in last week’s stalemate at St Mirren, but they wore down the Championship leaders away from home and that is seven games without defeat since the start of a new campaign.
Askou said: “It seems natural to the players; they don’t think too much about it anymore.
“They don’t react emotionally when they’re not successful or lose the ball.
“They just react instantly to win it back or block a shot. There are some emotions which are good to have.
“But some which might, with the style of play we try to implement, not be the most productive.
“Fear and frustration, for example. Anger too. If we want to play the way we want to play, we need optimism, positivity, resilience and bravery.
“Those are the emotions we try to instil in the players and push. Then there are some we try to tone down.
“It’s about being more effective as a football team. It’s been a while since we lost a game so there is a good feeling.”
Askou admitted St Johnstone were a serious test for his side.
“You have to earn the right to win games and I think we invested a lot into it,” he said. “So did St Johnstone and big praise to them, because they pushed us to the limit.
“We tried to drive the tempo from the start but they also had their moments.
“We had to defend really well at times but, with more sharpness in the final third, we might have decided the game in 90 minutes.”
Saints boss Simo Valakari lamented two missed chances, saying: “It wasn’t an easy game – Motherwell kept the ball and tried to break us down.
“But our players gave everything – every little bit they had inside their body. And in some moments, we played very well.
“We had two of the clearest chances in the match – Jason Holt and Makenzie Kirk.
“When you face a Premiership team you need to take them (chances).”
