In the premiere episode of our new ‘Influencers’ series, available for viewing below, our esteemed centre-back reflects on the impact of five former Reds who have significantly shaped his career, beginning with…
1: STEVE BRUCE
“Steve had a profound influence on my decision to join Hull City. There were several clubs interested in me that year [2014], but I distinctly remember signing with Hull while Steve was the manager, and it was a move I genuinely wanted to make. Hull is a fantastic club, and I really cherished my time there, but I can’t overlook how much Steve motivated me to make that choice; I admired his accomplishments at Manchester United. I appreciated his style of play and recognized him as an exceptional centre-back from whom I could gain invaluable insights. At that stage in my career, I was eager to learn and improve, and having Steve as my manager for three years was instrumental to my development.
“In my younger days, I prided myself on my ball skills and was always keen to showcase my talents on the field, pushing forward and making runs up the pitch. I think I prioritized my attacking instincts a bit too much over my defensive duties. However, once I joined Hull and started working with Steve, he emphasized the importance of my primary role as a defender—defending first and foremost! He instilled in me the principles of resolute defending—how to effectively protect the box and execute no-nonsense defensive tactics. He was not only a superb manager but also an exceptional man-manager, and I gained a tremendous amount from him.”
