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Derby County
On the club’s failure to get back to the Premier League in the last 15 years…
“For a club of this size, with a huge fan base, there’s an argument that they should have been in the Premier League more often, but there are plenty of factors. I think there’s been several issues with the board not giving managers enough money to compete and they’ve had better investment in the last few years. With Gary Rowett now involved, hopefully some stability comes back to the club.
“They were top of the league in the Championship for a couple of years after their relegation but then missed the play-offs and that was a killer for them. They’ve chopped and changed with a lot of managers and that can bring an air of instability. Hopefully now with the right investment and allowing Gary and his team to do a good job, they can push on. The fans expect to go up so there’s a lot of pressure on the club.”
On the Steve McClaren sacking…
“It’s possible the unsettling offers from other teams didn’t help. Ultimately it’s the players on the pitch who had to perform and they didn’t, regardless of what happened off it. I think perhaps Steve (pictured) was made a scapegoat and actually the players let him down.”
On the managerial merry-go round at Derby…
“They didn’t achieve what they wanted with any of the managers. Hopefully with Gary Rowett, the board will give him the time. He knows the area, knows what the fans want and hopefully he’ll settle the club down.”
On Gary Rowett…
“He’s completely changing the club. The club have had some really good players, including Will Hughes and Tom Ince, and he’s got rid of them to change to a more direct style. It’s really tough for him to come in and rally the team but he’s a great man for the job.”
On the departures of Tom Ince (below) and Will Hughes…
“They were great players at that level but if you have an opportunity to play in the Premier League, you take it. They’ve negated these transfers by bringing in the likes of Tom Lawrence and Maikel Kieftenbeld – they’re both a bit more suited when Derby don’t have the ball. Will Hughes was great on the ball, but less so defensively. Hopefully they’ll help the team in defensive situations.”
On Derby’s chances this season…
“I’m optimistic. I think they’ll do well. Middlesbrough and the likes of Wolves have spent a fortune for this window so it will be difficult to compete with those teams but I think Gary Rowett will make the team very hard to beat. I think they’ll be right in the play-offs come the end of the year.
“For me, they have to be aiming for the play-offs this season as a minimum, it will be a disappointing season otherwise. I would imagine the fans will settle for the play-offs.”
On the next few games coming up against Hull, Barnsley and Bristol City…
“It’s very hard to predict, they’re all very tough games. Bristol City in particular are an awkward team to play, you never know how good they’ll be. Hull, on a Friday night, will be a tough test as a former Premier League team. Barnsley are always a tricky team to predict so it’s an uneasy few games for Gary and the team. I’m sure they’d want nine points but in this league, you can’t guarantee anything.”
On the swap deal between Sam Winnall and Jacob Butterfield…
“They play different positions, so it’s difficult to compare them. Sam had a great record with Scunthorpe United and then Barnsley. Butterfield is an attacking midfielder and Gary felt he had quite a few who could fill his role. They’ve let a few midfielders go but they’ve got some great experience in the middle and have now added Maikel Kieftenbeld so it’s a good area of the pitch for them. They’ve got Bradley Johnson in there as well so they’ve got a decent balance. It’s goals that they need and hopefully Sam can get up and running for them.”
Leeds United
On his time at Leeds United…
“I have a lot of regrets, especially with my injuries. It was one of those moves that from the very start I couldn’t get going. I got injured early on and that was the theme of my time. I ruptured my thigh and tore my cartilage, it was a never-ending series of injuries and I never got a run of games going. I had a half-decent reputation and came for a lot of money but it was a really tough time for me. I didn’t play as well as I could.”
On how injuries can affect a player when they happen so regularly, looking at the likes of Daniel Sturridge, Jack Wilshere and Vincent Kompany…
“It’s so frustrating. It’s part and parcel of football. It can be a freak incident and then you get smaller injuries resulting from a big one. The physios nowadays are amazing and try to get these superstar footballers back to shape as quickly as possible but it’s a mindset that you have to overcome. The fans pay to see you play and you can’t give them what they want, it’s really quite upsetting. It plays on your mind and can have a massive effect.”
On which players he looked up to most during his time there…
“Lee Bowyer, Rio Ferdinand, Paul Robinson, Danny Mills and Michael Bridges were great guys and fantastic players to learn from. We had a fantastic team spirit at the time and they welcomed me into the team with open arms, which I was really grateful for. Mark Viduka was as good a player as I ever played with, he had one of the best touches I’ve seen.
“What surprised me about Rio Ferdinand in particular was his professionalism. I saw Rio and thought he could become the most expensive defender. He was world class, a true professional and an even better player. He had a great work culture.”
On the clause in his contract preventing him from reaching 60 games for the club…
“I was there for just under four years and the last year was the only year I stayed relatively injury free. I didn’t know about the clause in the contract actually. It was something agreed between the clubs. I kept getting left out and I thought it was because of injuries, I wasn’t sure why. I found out about the clause, four years after it was agreed, and I was thinking about paying the money myself, because I was fit and raring to go and wanted to play. They wanted me off the wage bill and it was a good move to go back to Derby.”
On Leeds this season…
“They’re unbeaten, things are certainly looking up. Ownership of the club seems to have sorted itself out and they’ve got a good manager in there. They are able to attract more exciting players from abroad with their new manager. If they get the supporters behind them, then they are built for a strong season – the fans are incredible.
“It’s a club that needs to be back in the Premier League.”
On the ownership of the club…
“It’s another hire-and-fire kind of club, a bit like Derby. They were happy with Monk but they had an unsettling season and it’s all down to results – which you could say have not been good enough for a club of Leeds’ stature.
“It’s possible the club would have progressed further had they not hired and fired so many people but it’s difficult to say. A lot of things can go on inside the club, and some of the decisions recently have not really had an explanation but now their decisions seem to make more sense and are benefiting the club and the players.”
On a summer of transfer activity, with an influx of players…
“The player I’m most excited to see is Pierre-Michel Lasogga from Hamburg. He’s been highly thought of and sounds like an exciting player. Sixteen players is a huge turnaround in the squad. They lost Chris Wood (below), who was top goalscorer and a key player for them, so Lasogga is one that needs to hit the ground running. Kemar Roofe has come in and is scoring for the club, which is exciting as well.
“Goalscorers are a high premium nowadays and with this market, Chris Wood didn’t go for as much as he could have. He was the leading goalscorer in the Championship and we’ve seen players go for bigger money who have scored less, so I think Leeds could have got more money. If he scores regularly for Burnley, then £15million will be a snip.”
On whether players are over-paid nowadays…
“Transfer fees definitely are, but I don’t think wages are. The top players need to be paid top dollar. With Oxlade-Chamberlain, he went for less money to play in centre midfield regularly. I’m sure the players see the headlines and people criticising them for being on such wages and like myself when I was signed at Leeds, it’s difficult to read but you just concentrate on backing it up. I had it easier because of the lack of social media, but nowadays it’s relentless and can have an effect on players.”
On which player he thinks are vital for Leeds United this season…
“Their new centre-back Pontus Jansson will be vital for the club. I watched him play last year on loan and he was fantastic, he showed what he could do. He’s old school, no nonsense and is a leader – the fans have really taken to him.
“The experienced players are huge for the club. When I played it was Rio and Lucas Radebe who orchestrated the team and kept it’s discipline, and he can be that type of player for them.”
On Leeds’ promotion chances…
“I think they’re in a similar position to Derby. If they can get in the play-offs, they can go up. You need consistency and if they don’t get it, they’ll finish mid-table. I think Leeds will have a great season and should aim for promotion this year.”
On the next few games against Burton Albion, Birmingham and Millwall…
“They’ll hope to win them all. You’d expect them to beat Burton at home, Millwall is a big rivalry but they should get three points there, and then Birmingham will be a big test – but fingers crossed they’ll get three points from each game.”
Crewe Alexandra
On his time at Crewe…
“Crewe did an enormous amount for me. They turned round to me and let me know about the bid they accepted for me and consulted me about it. I turned round to say I’d like to stay but knew they needed the money for the new stand at the time. It was a decision I took to stay at the time and fight for the club against relegation, as that would also have had financial ramifications.”
On Neil Baker’s departure…
“Neil took me in the under-16s and then moved to reserve manager and then assistant manager to Dario Gradi. He was an excellent scout, really had an eye for talent down the lower leagues. He was a real motivator, no nonsense and a top man. I had very fond memories of him.
“I’m not sure his departure will take a toll on the team and staff – it’s a big loss but I’m sure the club will cope.”
On how Crewe Alexandra can push on this season…
“I spoke to James Collins (head of coaching at Crewe) and he believes the club can really push on this season, they’ve got some young and hungry players there. If they keep hold of James Jones and George Cooper – who I think will have a really good season – then they can do well. It’s a club that always has decent young players coming through and they do give the youth players a good chance at the first team. I think George Cooper will be a standout player this season.”
England
On being selected for the national team despite playing for the Premier League’s bottom club and whether any players could replicate him…
“I think a lot of the lower-league players are getting far more recognition now than they were when I played. People like David Nugent were playing for England while in the Championship. The likes of Tom Heaton being in the squad shows that Gareth (Southgate) is looking down the league and you don’t need to play for the massive clubs to get a call-up.”
On accusations that former England managers are picking names rather than form players and Southgate bucking the trend…
“You’re always going to have the players at the big clubs in the squad, as they’re the best players in the English game. Southgate isn’t scared to give form players a chance, regardless of who they’re playing for.”
On the young group of players…
“There are some really exciting young players in the team, with the recent success of the Under 19s and Under 21 teams. Marcus Rashford is a world beater, he could do whatever he wanted. It’s a great time for English youth football, but they need to be playing games. Nathaniel Chalobah is full of ability and talent but he needed to make the move to Watford to give himself a chance at international level. It will only help the national team if the young players are playing first-team football for their clubs.”
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