Archives for "Interviews"

By Danny Wright

Manchester City goalkeeper Shay Given has revealed he is desperate to win silverware.

In a candid interview with The Sunday Times, the former Newcastle man admitted he moved to Mark Hughes’ side in the hunt for trophies.

Given, 33, is perhaps the best goalkeeper in the top-flight never to have won major domestic honours after 12 baron years at St James Park.

“The gaffer sitting beside me (Mark Hughes) is lucky enough to say his titles and stuff and I’d love to do the same, talk about winning cup finals, leagues and all that. I’d love to win any cup,” Given told the newspaper.

“I don’t think adulation amounts to very much unless you’ve got trophies. You look at the great keepers through the years, [Ray] Clemence and Peter Schmeichel, they’re remembered for what they won in their lives as much as anything else.”

He added: “I’d hate to look back on my career and have won nothing. I want people to say, ‘He was a good goalkeeper – and he won some silverware’.”

After nearly a decade at Newcastle, and amassing over 350 league appearances for the Magpies, Given knew the time was right to make the switch to Eastlands.

He admitted: “I felt it was right to move on from Newcastle because the ambition there has slightly changed over the last couple of years and I felt I was joining a club that was totally opposite,”

“I can’t say we’re definitely going to do this and that but I’m at a club that excites me and I really believe it will challenge for major honours within the four-year contract I signed.”

Given is sorely missed on Tyneside, where his former club are battling against relegation under the stewardship of club icon Alan Shearer.

Despite leaving the club in January, Given is praying his former team-mate can keep the club afloat.

“It would be a disaster for the people, the club and the city if there was relegation. I hope, please God, that they do it [survive],” he added.

Our Pre Season features continue today with another interview, today we have the chance to chat with the Premiership and Champions League winners Manchester United’s very own Ben Foster.

PROFILE

Ben Foster was born on the 3 April 1983 in Leamington Spa,

Ben started his football career at Racing Club Warwick in 2000. He spent a season there before he joined Stoke City.

During his time at Stoke, Foster had loan spells at Tiverton Town, Bristol City, Stafford Rangers, Kidderminster Harriers and Wrexham. Foster sustained a cruciate knee ligament injury in June 2003 while playing tennis, this sidelined him for a period of six months.

Ben was spotted by Alex Ferguson, playing for Wrexham, on loan from Stoke, when the United manager was watching his son, Darren, in the LDV Vans Trophy Final in 2005, which Wrexham won. Manchester United had been struggling for many years to replace goalkeeping legend Peter Schmeichel, and Ferguson decided to move for the young Foster – paying £1 million.

 Signing with Sells Golakeeper Products while on loan at Watford.

He joined Manchester United from Stoke City on 19 July 2005. Between 2005 and 2007, he was on loan to Watford. Watford manager Aidy Boothroyd has claimed that “he’s better than current Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar” and believes that “he is going to be the best goalkeeper in the world.”  Manchester United manager Ferguson has suggested that Foster will succeed Edwin van der Sar as first-choice keeper at United and should eventually replace Paul Robinson as “England’s next goalkeeper.” At this stage Sells Goalkeeper Products signed a 3 year deal with the United stopper who displayed his loyalty to one of his sponsors that have been with him since he played at Stoke even in the face of big money offers from Nike and Adidas.

 Sells Adhesion Ultra Wrap Aqua as used by the United stopper

Foster had an impressive season at Watford, attracting plaudits from opponents and commentators. His long goal-kick was a particular asset for Watford as many of the team’s goals came via so called ‘route one’ football, with a long clearance from Foster collected by strikers Marlon King and Darius Henderson in promising positions. His imposing stature, confidence at set-pieces and excellent shot-stopping ability also stood out in what was his first full professional season. Foster helped Watford reach the Premier League by beating Leeds United 3-0 in the Championship play-off final.

On 10 August 2006, Foster re-signed on loan for Watford after Manchester United secured the services of Polish goalkeeper Tomasz Kuszczak on loan. Foster remained at Vicarage Road for the entire 2006-07 season as United had no option to recall him.

Then in  June 2007, it was announced that Foster would undergo surgery on a cruciate ligament injury in his right knee. He returned to light training towards the end of 2007, before moving on to a more rigorous regime in mid-January 2008 and made a comeback in a reserves game against Middlesbrough on the 6th March 2008, Foster made his debut for Manchester United on 15 March 2008 against Derby County, as Van der Sar was injured and Kuszczak was suspended, having been sent off against Portsmouth in the FA Cup quarter final the previous Saturday. United won the game 1-0, with Foster making two crucial saves en route to keeping a clean sheet.

 Making his 1st England start.

England

2006, Foster was named on the stand-by list for England’s 2006 World Cup squad, because of Robert Green’s injury in a “B” international against Belarus. After Foster re-signed on loan for Watford, he was called up to Steve McClaren’s first England squad as one of three goalkeepers for the friendly against Greece. Since his first call-up but prior to his injury, Foster was named in every England squad, and made his England debut in the 1-0 defeat against Spain on 7 February 2007.

Now Pre Season is well under way I was kindly given the chance by Sells’s Dave Baxter put some question to undoughtly one of the best up and coming keepers in the Premiership.

Dave Baxter is the head of Sells Product Development and work’s very closely with the Sells pro keepers in producing keeper products.

At this point we here at great-save.com would like to take this chance to thank Dave set us this chance to talk to the Manchester United keeper. 

 Wearing the new Sells Total Contact Exosphere Guard featuring Adhesion H2O latex

Q&A 

Ben as a goalkeeper how do you find pre season? are you one that dreads going back to the training ground? 

I have always been a person that has dreaded pre pre season training, the training sessions are usually a lot higher intensity and involve a lot more running which goalkeepers are notoriously bad at and I’m no exception!

At Manchester United will Sir Alex and his coaching team make the keepers at the club do the same fitness work as the outfield players? Running, sprinting etc with the squad?

The keepers have a different programme to the other players as keepers require a different type of fitness. Keepers need to be more explosive and quick for a shorter time and is not so important to be able to run for hours on end so we usually work with the goalkeeper coach for maybe an hour, then join in with the lads where we’ll have six a sides, shooting etc and then we usually finish with a bit of running.

As a keeper what should I work on most during the pre season weeks?

Pre season is a great chance to work on mainly leg muscle strength and general fitness, and due to the lack of games is a great time to start trying new techniques in training where it doesn’t matter so much if you get it wrong.

I understand it is important as a goalkeeper to eat the right things to maintain a good level of energy and strength, however I need some advice on what professional keepers eat during the week and things they avoid would be great?

As a lover of food and a big lad, I always seem to be hungry at any given time of the day! Through working with the nutritionist at United, we have a designed eating plan that through testing works for me. For a pre season training day my general day would go like this:

Breakfast I will have a large bowl of cereal like fruit and fibre.

Lunch at about 1.30 I will have another large plate of food which normally consists of 1/3 salad, 1/3 vegetables and 1/3 meat or fish, if that sees me through to dinner time (6.30) then great but if I need a snack then I’ll have some fruit but for dinner I’ll try and eat something similar to lunch but different foods.

After 7 I clock I will not eat anything else as your body’s metabolism slows down after that time and you burn calories at a much slower rate so if I peckish il just have a glass of milk. I have also started calorie counting foods that I eat – you wouldn’t believe the amount of calories in some things!

What sort of fitness work have you been doing before pre season or do you have a complete rest? 

I always have 2 weeks off to give the body a chance to recover from the past season at which point I will start to do light training, jogging, cycling and weights three times a week. 

How much emphasis does the Manchester United coaching team place on video technology replaying old games and studying the next opposition during the season? 

Video analysis plays a big part in our preparation for our next games and also analysis for games that we have already played.

Usually on a Friday before a game we will have about an hour video session where we look at all the strengths’ and weaknesses of our opposition and try to come up with a game plan, the video also shows good things and things that need improving on from our last game. 

At United how many times a week would you train?

If there is a week where there isn’t a midweek game then we will normally do a warm down on the Sunday after the game then have Monday off and then train everyday from then on in preparation for the Saturday’s game – obviously the earlier in the week it is the harder the training will be and toward the end of the week training is very light in preparation for the game. 

As a keeper do you spend much time in the gym working with weights? If so what should I be working on as a keeper when I visit my local gym? 

The gym is very important for me, as I have had knee problems in the past it is essential that I work at least 4 sessions per week doing leg exercises’ like squats and lunges to keep my legs strong,, also at the end of 3 of the sessions I will also do ab work and core work. 

Working with Edwin Van Der Sar must be great? What is he like to work with? Does he help you with your game?

Edwin is a great keeper to learn from, he’s got so much experience that you can’t fail to pick up pointers that can improve your game. 

This is a big season for you after missing most of last season, do you think you will go out on loan or will you be staying at United to fight for the number one jersey?

I’m fully committed to staying at United now and fighting for the number 1 jersey, I know it’s going to be my toughest season to date as we have such quality in the goalkeeping department but I’m fully fit now and raring to go.

Who is the best player in training at United? I bet it has been a great feeling to be on the same field as Ronaldo? 

There are a few players that it’s a treat to train with day in day out but the person who I like watching in training is Paul Scholes.

He’s the calmest player in any given situation and is still one of the greatest strikers of a ball I have ever seen and isn’t afraid to try his luck in training for 40 – 50 yards sometimes!

Ben Foster wears Sells Goalkeeper Products, the new Sells range of glove & clothing with start coming into store from late July visit www.great-save.com for all the latest releases.

Diet/Nutrition

I try and watch what I eat as much as possible to maintain a certain weight, however lots of foods like pasta/potatoes/rice that people often recommend contain lots of carbohydrates, and they can put on weight, what’s your advice?

You do have to watch what you eat, personally I learned more later on in my career, what I found was that when your working hard you need the carbohydrates. As a goalkeeper it is a lot of short sharp blasts, it’s not like the outfielders who burn the carbs a lot more and a lot faster than us keepers would. I think the percentages alter slightly different for keepers 60/65 percent of a meal should be carbs, I would reduce that by about 10%, if he finds he’s putting weight on try and get some more protein on board. You are still going to need it but don’t eat as much keepers don’t need it in the quantities outfielders do.

Great question this one. You are all told as players what to eat, but keepers are different, if you can get hold of a nutritionist it would be worth a word and get him to watch what you do. I got told later in my career that I needed more protein. A keeper needs to be more explosive, the activity does not last as long and as a keeper we need a bit more bulk than an outfielder.

I understand it is important as a goalkeeper to eat the right things to maintain a good level of energy and strength, however I need some advice on what professional keepers eat during the week and things they avoid would be great?

It’s like I said getting a good balance is really important, look to get some carbs on board but try to also add protein, fish, chicken and rice are all good. Try and keep off the full fat foods.

Would you spend much time in the gym during pre-season and during the season?

Never at Bristol Rovers, at Palace I can count on one hand how many times I went in the gym, we used to do sit ups with the ball and press ups. At Leeds they were keen on us going in the gym, I’m a bit old fashioned I like to do sit up and press ups, the most I did in a gym was at Everton, I was trying to keep toned, coming up to 40 I needed to work on it a bit. I have always been naturally bulky so going to the gym was never a real issue for me.

Nigel in his days at Everton where he became a fans favorite.

When you went to Everton Richard Wright was the number one keeper at the time, what was he like to work with?

I worked really well with him, he was and still is a top keeper and kept me well on my toes, he needs to play now, I know he has been at West Ham for a while as number 2, I was glad he did well at Southampton. Richard is a great stopper and I am sure he was a big reason why they stayed up. It was a great move from Nigel Pearson to get Richard to the club at such a crucial time.

What was your favourite pre-season goalkeeping drill?

Pre-season was all about working on all aspects really and loads of repetition to perfect technique.

COACHING

Training – Can you recommend anything I can do as an individual. The team I play for does have a dedicated goalkeeper coach, however I do like to try and train as much on my own as possible be this taking a few balls to the field to practice my kicking. Can you suggest any individual practices to work on my conditioning in particular or any other topics i.e. handling/footwork?

It’s very difficult really, conditioning wise he can do some gym work not necessarily heavy weights but lighter with more reps this is what I did, good old fashioned press ups and sit ups, anything to keep you fit and strong and also for strength when your playing. Kicking is what springs to mind, but it is very difficult on your own. It’s great to hear people want to do extra work on their game.  I was very fortunate to be able to go training and work with a coach and a squad of players who were keeping you in action. When you’re doing it professionally its every day I never had to work on my own.

A thing that can be done on your own is to work on concentration and visual exercises, no matter who you are your mind can wonder, it was the same for me, at any level you play at, Premiership, Sunday league or a FA Cup semi-final it is easy to lose your concentration. I remember one time at Spurs, watching the game on the big screen, whislt playing and there was a 2 second delay on the screen, I was watching us having an attack then it breaking down then looking back at the game being played, obviously ahead of what I saw on the screen, then thinking wow that’s dangerous I shouldn’t be doing that.

It’s important not too switch off in a game which is easily done. It’s good to have a trigger, you must bring yourself back, that could be what it would feel like to let a goal in because you weren’t concentrating and what impact that would have on your team mates and supporters, that’s usually a good way of frightening yourself. Or you can think of something good you’ve done before that could also bring your concentration back.

The Ex England stopper speaks with great-save.com’s Martin Sanders

How do you break down your week working with the keepers at Bradford? Do you cover the four main topics shot stopping, back pass, distribution and crossing every week or is it specific to how the goalkeeper has performed on the previous match.

I am purely part-time at Bradford City I go in 2 days a week with the goalies. The kit man there used to be a keeper and would take training when I am not there. I liaise with him and see what they have been up to. He tends to do kicking drills and crossing drills which I can mix with him so we work on shot stopping and foot work.

I just go in as it help’s Bradford and the keepers, I love being around the lads to, for them financially they could not afford to pay a full-time keeper coach, so it suits both parties really. I want to spend time with my family, I did spend so much time away from home when I was playing, the kids are still young so it will be nice to watch the kids grow up, maybe as they get older I may do more coaching.

Goalkeeper coaching.

Does he cover the four main topics shot stopping, backpass, distribution and crossing everyweek or is it specific to how the goalkeeper has performed on the previous match?

We try and mix it up as much as we can, we try to work on every thing you can get as a keeper, we work on shots from angles as well as low shots. We do drills where it’s footwork then 4 low saves to the left, and then 4 low saves on the right, it’s a repetition it’s the same save just over and over again, you do this in a nice set up way, then try and do it in a goal where you get someone taking a touch and then a shot, you then have the goalkeeper moving into line so it has the realism with it, and then a case of the final bit the handling, pratising, then making sure your getting you feet in and being balanced before the ball / shot comes.

Regards to looking at mistakes from previous games I would look at something someone is struggling on, say one of the lads makes a mistake on a Saturday say he drops a cross, the worst thing you can do mentally is to make an issue out of it and go in on Monday morning and say lets go and work on some crosses. He then knows your working on it because he dropped one Saturday, best thing to do is work on it say a week later then it’s not related to him dropping a ball, a lot of people I think try and work on something that went wrong then react on it too soon when there mind is not in the right frame of mind. As a coach you need to try and think about how they think mentally after games. If I had made a mistake I would never want to work in it at that point, I thought it would be better if you work on it when your ready.

As a keeper what should I work on most during the pre-season weeks?

Getting fit is important, getting sharp again, making sure you’re fully focused, over the pre-season time you will end up doing a lot of repetition work, going over things time and time again. Look to work on all parts of your game.

With Many thanks to Paul and Mark at Selsport for getting us the chance to speak with Nigel.

To read part one of this feature and interview please click here

Next week i will be chatting with Premiership & Champion’s League Winners Manchester United’s very own Ben Foster about the Man United PreSeason so far.

Nigel Martyn played over 500 competitive matches in English football. He most prominently played seven seasons each for Crystal Palace and Leeds United, and also won 23 England caps. An ankle injury forced him to retire in 2006, following three seasons for Everton. He is now a part time goalkeeping coach at Bradford City.

The top stopper started at amateur side St Blazey before beginning his professional career with Bristol Rovers in 1987. Being transferred to Crystal Palace for a fee of £1 million in 1989, he became the first goalkeeper to attract a million-pound transfer fee in English football. It was at Crystal Palace that Nigel first gained international recognition with a call up to the full England side. He remained at Palace for seven seasons, appearing 349 times for his club, including the 1990 FA Cup final (where Palace were beaten by Manchester United on a replay), and the 1991 Zenith Data Systems Cup final (where Palace beat Everton). In 1996, he signed with Leeds United, setting another record fee for a goalkeeper of £2.25m.

In the summer of 2003, Leeds were approached by Everton with an offer to sign Martyn. The then Leeds manager, Terry Venables, had favored the young Paul Robinson over the experienced Martyn. At Everton, the first-choice was Richard Wright. Martyn chose to move to Everton, and six games into the season, an injury to Wright gave him his Everton debut. His performances for the first team during Wright’s recovery were such that Martyn remained Everton’s first-choice goalkeeper even after Wright returned from injury.

Martyn was one of Everton’s best performers in the 2004-05 season when they achieved their best ever finish in the Premier League of 4th. Many Everton fans believed that Martyn almost single-handedly stopped them from slipping down the table after Thomas Gravesen’s departure. He produced some of the best form of his career, despite being 38 years of age, to the delight of the Everton fans, with whom he remains a favourite.

On June 8, 2006, Martyn announced his retirement from football due to an ankle injury. His last game was in the January of that year and spent the final months of the season side lined and having to have operations. David Moyes said that he would miss his key goalkeeper Martyn as he was his “greatest ever signing”.

As a young boy growing up I was a huge fan of Martyn, many times watching Match of the Day on a Saturday evening with my brother (young local goalkeeper at the time) we often commented about the quality of the top stopper. Being Southampton fans we saw Martyn play a few times at the then home of the Saints the Dell, Martyn was a fine keeper who we both looked up to, never did we see him have a bad game, “why is he not playing for England? my brother use to say”

Selsport gloves which Martyn loved, “Once i had my 1st pair of roll finger gloves I never turned back, David Seaman hated roll finger gloves, i loved my Selsport Wrappa’s.

When Mark at Selsport said I should do a one on one interview with Nigel Martyn I could not wait to get on the phone to him, the chance to talk to one of my childhood heroes, a keeper who I looked up to, a keeper who had a fine career. With pre-season nearing there was so much to chat about.

After a few minutes on the phone and my nerves well settled, I realised not only was he a top goalkeeper he was a top man too.

Nigel with it now being pre-season I would like to chat about your pre-seasons as a keeper?

Pre –season was a hard time as a player, go ahead Martin fire the questions

In his days at Leeds United.

Pre-Season’s

During your years as a goalkeeper how did you find pre-season? Were you one that dreaded going back to the training ground?

Not dreading it, but I was very nervous. Even right up to the end of my playing days, I was nervous about pre-season, you know it’s going to be hard work! But it has to be done, there are no doubts that is stands you in good stead for the long hard season ahead.

As a keeper at a pro club did you have to do the fitness work i.e. running etc with the squad?

It changed for me as the years went by, when I first started with Bristol Rovers I did all the running, and when we did any ball work I went in goal. At Leeds and Everton there was an element of running and ball drill work. It was good to work with the ball and the running helped with my overall fitness.

As a keeper you were seen as a very consistent, one who made few mistakes

I think that’s right I was not necessarily the one who was going to grab the headlines, but speaking to players and ex -managers since and what they always say is that I was consistent. I never wanted to make mistakes but I also tried to organise the defence so they never made mistakes either, if the defence has confidence in you as a keeper it gives them confidence, and it was something I worked on a lot. As a keeper you can see what’s going on, seeing the players drifting off there man I would try and correct them, I was not a keeper who was going to make the headlines, but I did make sure I was always on my game.

International Days

Martyn making his first England Squad.

I was involved in the squad a while before I got my 1^st cap, in the end I got 23 caps. I first got into the squad at the end of 1990. I made my debut in Moscow in 1992. I do have some good memories, though at times it was a little frustrating, I am not sure how many squads I made probably about 70-80 and to only play 23 times which was a little frustrating, David Seaman was in top form at the time.

Making a great save in one if his 23 England Caps.

How did it all end

I had a really bad ankle injury, my last game was 30^th January 2006, I never played again and the rest of the season I was back at home convalescing, trying to get over operations. I was so lucky to have 19 seasons and its your whole life when you’re a pro footballer. With being a pro it takes over everything, lock stock and barrel. So its a big wrench when it finishes I was frustrated to finish because of injury and it was not how I wanted to finish.

For Part 2 please click here

Following his heroics in Barnsley’s FA Cup Fifth Round win against Liverpool, Luke Steele has become hot property. Plucked from the obscurity of the West Brom reserves, the 23-year-old was thrust in at the deep end as the Tykes recorded a historic win at Anfield after a hastily arranged loan deal was sorted between the two clubs. Despite a lack of first team action, Steele didn’t disappoint. The inevitable clamour has since littered the back pages as Barnsley build up to a home tie with current holders Chelsea in the quarter finals. After a hard days training and a feature for BBC’s Football Focus (that “dragged”, he tells me), Luke caught up with Danny Wright ahead of the big match…

First and foremost, congratulations regarding the win at Liverpool. You face Chelsea next, what are thoughts ahead of the clash?   

Obviously it’s going to be a tough game. Chelsea isn’t going to be easy but they know we have already beaten a  great side in the form of Liverpool. We’ll be trying to cause an upset and hopefully we can nick a goal and cause another shock. 

What’s the atmosphere like in the Barnsley camp at the moment?  

Well, there’s a lot of media attention so things are buzzing and its cup fever really. There’s a lot of hype – the people of Barnsley are really looking forward to it and it’s definitely great for them, a big Premier League team coming to town. It’s been 10 years since they had Premier League football in Barnsley and it’s good to have top quality opponents coming up to Oakwell. It’s very exciting.    

 How far do you think you’ll go in the competition? 

At the moment we’re just enjoying it. So far it’s an absolutely remarkable achievement and the desire is there to achieve more. We’ve just go to take it one game at a time as we realise it’s a big task ahead.     

How did your loan move to Barnsley actually come about? 

I was aware Barnsley needed a keeper as Heinz Muller was injured and Tony Warner was cup tied and it was a case of my name getting mentioned to the manager, Simon Davey. Luckily I wasn’t cup tied myself and the two clubs agreed a deal. I’m hoping to extend my deal to the end of the season, play as many games as possible and do well during the time I’m here.   

What would you have been doing had Barnsley not come in for you? 

I’d probably still be at West Brom (his parent club)…not playing. It’s been frustrating not playing, which I hate. Dean Kiely’s done a great job in goal and only one keeper can play at a time so I relished the chance to play at Barnsley. I’ve been fortunate enough to get that stroke of luck needed to play. 

What were your feelings after the Liverpool game? How did you celebrate?       

It was a case of preparing for the following league games because we had those to concentrate on. We let our hair down a bit on that night but we were back in during the week to prepare for the mid-week league matches.   

Was there a particular moment that stood out for you in that game?    

When the game was poised at 1-1, I made a save from (Yossi) Benayoun which was quite important. I mean, I’d been fairly busy all afternoon but that was my favourite save as it was an important one, keeping the score at 1-1. That gave us a big confidence boost and as the game went on we wore them down and frustrated them. Ultimately we won it thanks to a wonderful goal by our captain.     

Did you find it difficult getting to know your team mates ahead of the game? You arrived on short notice…     

I had two days to prepare for the game. It’s just a case of trying to find out as much as possible about your team mates in the time you have.     

What are your plans for after the loan move? Would staying at Barnsley be an option or is it a return to the Hawthorns?    

Either way, I just want to carry on playing. I’ve spent a lot of the year on the benches so I’d definitely consider staying on here if it means more games come about. Barnsley is definitely a possibility.   

 You’ve spent a lot of your career on loan, for instance at Coventry City. Where do you see yourself in a few years time? 

I hope to be number one somewhere in a few years time. I’m hungry to play games and hope to be playing for a club permanently, hopefully knocking on the Premier League door.   

You spent four years at Old Trafford with Manchester United? How did you find your time there, and how did you take leaving the club?   

There were good and bad times. It’s a tough place to break into, especially when you had the likes of (Fabien) Barthez and Edwin van der Saar there. They are both great keepers. Obviously it was frustrating not playing football, so in the end I was happy to go…it was time to move on.  

Who is the best player you have played with and against? 

Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes are the players I admire. Alan Shearer is the best player I’ve ever faced when I was at Coventry – you don’t realise just how good he is on the ball and how strong he is.   

Who inspires you?   

Been a goalkeeper and a Man U fan it’s got to be Peter Schmeichel, he was such a good keeper. Ryan Giggs, too. He’s had a great career over the past ten years at the very top level and if I could have anyone’s career, it’d be his.   

What are your strengths and weaknesses?   

I’d say my quickness around the box and my reflexes are my strengths. Obviously I don’t want to give my weaknesses away! But I will say every area can be considered a weakness, there’s always something that needs to improve. I’m not perfect by a long way.   

What are your favourite drills on the training ground?   

 I like to work hard and work myself. I put in a 110% every time. I particularly enjoy shooting drills where I’m making saves, but anything that involves competition I love. Crossing and finishing drills are the best, where I’m making saves and I can do my best.     

What’s the best advice you’ve received? And what advice would you give to those aspiring keepers out there?   

I think the best advice I’ve ever received – and this isn’t just for football; if it’s life, snooker or whatever always try to win and play to win and do your best. Always try to bring the best out of yourself and you can come off that pitch knowing you’ve done the best you possibly can. In terms of youngsters I’d say believe in yourself. There’s no right or wrong way to learn goalkeeping and it’s wrong to believe thats the case. Just take a look at Barthez and van der Saar – they’re both different keepers with different styles but they’re both top class. Obviously you need to be good in the first place, but have that belief in your own style and technique. You also need the right mentality. Mistakes don’t matter, just as long as you believe in yourself. At the end of the day, enjoy the game, or there would be no point in even playing.    

How did you get into football?    

I started playing with my older brothers in the garden like you do as a boy. I played in my school team and started playing Sunday league at an early age – about seven or eight years old. I started to have fun when playing full size games and I was taken on by Peterborough at the age of nine. Manchester United came in for me when I was 17.   

What would you be doing if you hadn’t been a footballer?

You get asked this quite a lot. When I was younger I wanted to be in the army or the SAS, something like that. I never know really, but after football I’d like to go into the media…maybe acting?   

What’s the best stadium you’ve played in? 

Old Trafford. I played there in the FA Youth Cup and it’s a massive stadium, there are no bigger stadiums than Old Trafford.    

Just a little bit more about you personally. What’s your taste in music and TV like?  

Wide range, from Michael Jackson to indie to R ‘n’ B. I don’t have any one type. Only Fools and Horses is a big favourite, mostly comedies really. I hate to admit it, but I liked Neighbours when I was younger! I like Friends and Soccer AM too. I also enjoy films.   

How did you spend your first wage packet?   

Paying back people I owed! Friends and family and the like. I save most of my money at the bank and probably just bought a few sweets down at the shop.    

Finally, describe yourself in five words.    

Five words? Help me out here…positive. I enjoy life. I’m adventurous, hungry for success and mentally strong.   Danny thanked Luke for his time, exchanged pleasantries and wished the big man the best of luck ahead of the Chelsea clash.

Luke Steele wears the Adidas Finger Tip Climaproof E7S which he buys from great-save.com

From all of us at great-save.com we wish Luke all the best for Saturday’s game at Chelsea.