Eye-opening

When I broke through at Celtic at 18, it was a brilliant time for Scottish football. 

The finances were big. Rangers had Mikel Arteta, Stefan Klos and the De Boer brothers. We had Henrik Larsson, Neil Lennon, Alan Thompson and Chris Sutton. 

Within Glasgow, the rivalry was as intense as ever. On the pitch, the level grew to the highest it had been, and would be, for some time. 

Every away game, you travelled with thousands of fans. At home, you were supported by 60,000 – and you had to win. If you didn’t, that meant your biggest rival did. 

Every newspaper in the city followed both teams heavily. The big news was around Celtic and Rangers, and it was constant.

Our manager then, Martin O’Neill, had an amazing presence and aura. He was very much a traditional manager, and he had two coaching staff – John Robertson and Steve Walford – who were brilliant. As his assistants, they bridged the gap between Martin and the players. 

"every single day at training, there were battles to win"

He was very, very clear on what he wanted, and he recruited to that end. You also had clarity on what he thought was a good performance in the position you played. He gave you real simplicity, so you knew how he wanted the team to defend, and you knew what he wanted if you were an attacking player. 

When it came to centre-backs, Martin was really big on physicality. He bought Bobo Balde and Joos Valgaeren to Celtic, for example, and later at Aston Villa he signed Zat Knight. He loved attacking players who would take on opponents one-on-one. In fact, he’d be more angry if you didn’t. He was very demanding about keeping possession in certain areas, but he had no issue with you losing the ball if you were trying to be positive.

Celtic’s academy was also really, really strong. Colin Healy, the late Liam Miller, John Kennedy, David Marshall, Aidan McGeady and Stephen Crainey were among those who came through at the time. Each would have had to replace a really big player.

Martin was brilliant with the young players. John and Steve were always at reserve and youth-team games, and if they saw something they liked they’d immediately move you to train with the first team. He treated me the same at 18 as he did when I joined him at Villa aged 24. Interactions may have been minimal, but they were simple and came with clarity.  

We had a really senior dressing room. Every single day at training, there were battles to win – no matter what drill we were doing. I experienced it again on occasion with Scotland under Walter Smith and Gordon Strachan, but nowhere else besides. The culture could be ruthless. 

"The conditioning sessions were the hardest I’d done in my career, a real eye-opener"

Henrik, who had an amazing mentality, was a big driver of that culture and how intense and competitive it could be. He trained, every day, how he played. 

And Martin was an amazing manager – at that time, as good as anyone. We got to the UEFA Cup final in 2003, had some big results in the Champions League, and won three Scottish Premierships despite the level of Rangers being really, really high. 

When Gordon came in in 2005, his job wasn't only to replace Martin as a personality. He also had to rebuild a successful squad that was coming to the end of a cycle, but still try to win leagues and qualify for Europe. 

He was very hands-on. Every session, every drill, he was there. He put a really good emphasis on improving players technically, no matter what age they were.

Every morning, the first thing would be a technique-based exercise. He also implemented a different culture that included bringing through young players. To win the double in his first season was an incredible achievement.

The conditioning sessions were the hardest I’d done to that point in my career, and were a real eye-opener. He was really big on us being as fit as possible.

"I played against some brilliant teams – United were as good as it gets – and it was a privilege to play with Gareth Barry"

He also changed my position from second striker to winger. That was a big change, which was something else he was really good at. He continually gave positional instructions.

We had some really good results in the Champions League under Gordon. In the 2006/07 season, he got us out of a group including Manchester United, Benfica and Copenhagen – despite working with a smaller budget than the club had had in previous years. 

I’d been desperate to stay when Celtic accepted an offer for me from Martin and Villa in January 2007. After a difficult few months, I ended up having a really enjoyable 2007/08 at another club with passionate, demanding supporters. 

I played against some brilliant teams – United, that year, were as good as it gets – and it was a privilege to play with Gareth Barry. Martin had also brought through Gabby Agbonlahor and signed Ashley Young, John Carew and Stiliyan Petrov. We had some really, really good players. 

In the summer of 2008, it wasn’t just reuniting with Gordon that tempted me back to Celtic. I always loved playing for the club. I’d supported them as a child, and I loved the intensity there.

During those 18 months they’d signed some better players, and they were performing at a far higher level than when I’d left. Scott Brown, Thomas Gravesen and Shunsuke Nakamura had come in, and McGeady was probably the best player in the league.

"it was the first time I’d heard about positional play, relying on a teammate finding you instead of chasing the ball"

It was a big task just to break into the team. I had horrendous injury problems that first year, and I really didn’t play enough. In fact, during what became a three-year spell, I maybe only had 12 months where I was fully fit. I loved those moments –especially the European nights – but the injuries I had meant it became very difficult. I wanted to play and be a part of the squad, but no matter how hard I tried I had problems.

By the summer of 2011, I was part of what needed refreshing ahead of a new cycle under Neil Lennon. When Roberto Martínez and Wigan came in for me on the last day of the August transfer window, and he told me about the role he saw for me, it felt perfect.

The way Roberto wanted to play football was something I’d not heard someone speak about, so it was pretty exciting. He's a passionate guy, and his approach was based on having the ball. It was the first time I’d heard about positional play, and relying on a teammate finding you in certain positions instead of chasing the ball.

He really started to open my eyes about playing the game in a different way, and that time under him was the best I performed in terms of consistency at the highest level, and having an impact against big teams. My biggest technical improvements came under Gordon – that first year under him was massive for me – but under Roberto I experienced a seismic increase in my tactical awareness. It all just made sense.

Roberto wanted to dominate the ball against the best opponents, and at our best we could do that. There was a structure he wanted to stick to, but within that structure we had the freedom to move and rotate.

I ended up having a brilliant relationship with our left wing-back Jean Beausejour, a very demanding but brilliant player. Our structure also meant that it felt like I had more time, which meant I had more confidence to be even more creative.

"It always felt like we had an extra player in the middle of the pitch, because of the two sixes and the two 10s"

We had a small squad, so when we had injuries it had a big impact. But our two number sixes – James McCarthy and James McArthur – were really good players. Maynor Figueroa was another really good player for us, with what he could give from central defence. 

We were from so many different backgrounds – many didn’t speak English – so we created a culture by rooming with those of a different nationality on away trips. We also had a lot of social time, including lots of dinners. Gradually, the British, Spanish and South American groups all became aligned. 

By the time I arrived, Roberto had already started using a 3-4-3 formation, which Gary Caldwell told me he’d started working on in training during 2010/11. Though it’s become a more popular system since then, back then we were the only ones using it. 

In possession, it gave us a big advantage. Out of possession, it was a little open when we didn’t get it right, but when we did we could compete against the best teams in the league. It always felt like we had an extra player in the middle of the pitch, because of the two sixes and the two 10s. That gave us a sense of security. As a number 10, I could rotate with a six or a wing-back, and because there wasn’t that much pressure – and because I loved that structure – it might even be the most enjoyable football I played. 

Winning 3-0 at Everton in the sixth round of the FA Cup made us realise we could reach the final in 2012/13. The most important performance that season came a few weeks after that, though – at Manchester City, the defending Premier League champions. We lost 1-0, but we should have won. We were more dominant, we knew we could match them and, if we got it right, we knew we could beat them.

"He made it all about our performance and how he wanted us to play – it almost felt like that was bigger than the result"

Our preparations for the FA Cup final, against City, were really low-key. We were in the middle of a relegation battle – in the game before the final we got beat 3-2 at home by Swansea, which was huge – but ahead of the biggest game of our lives Roberto had the ability to take the pressure off us. 

He made it all about our performance and how he wanted us to play – it almost felt like the performance was bigger than the result. “The result will follow if the performance is good.” He took real joy in how a team could keep the ball, and gave us a sense of not being concerned about the result. It was always about the performance and where the team was going, rather than us having to win a certain game. 

In the final at Wembley, our goalkeeper Joel Robles needed to make a big save from Sergio Agüero. Then, against a great team, we shared possession of the ball, doing exactly what we’d done at the Etihad. I was instructed to stop Gareth Barry or Yaya Touré freely having possession, and our two attacking players, Callum McManaman and Arouna Koné, had standout games. That was the difference between us losing at the Etihad and winning 1-0 at Wembley.

The feeling at the final whistle was one of pure joy. When I’d won titles and cups at Celtic there was a feeling of joy but also relief, because of the expectation. This was pure joy, and happiness at delivering for our 40,000 fans – which, for a town of 50,000, was incredible. 

Wigan is a really small, close-knit club. It was an amazing achievement.

We had a long day of celebrating with our families, but at the end of it we were straight back on the bus back to Wigan. The next day we had to start preparing for Arsenal away three days later, to try to avoid relegation. 

"It was during my time at Wigan, under Roberto, that I started to think about the game differently"

We went 1-0 down, got back to 1-1, and then the effects of the cup final hit us. They scored two goals really quickly, and we ended up getting beaten 4-1. We believed we could do it, but injuries really hurt us that season. Devastatingly, it was just a step too far. 

There was the really strange sense of winning the cup three days earlier, and then going from such a high to such a low. With that came a massive amount of uncertainty. Within a few days, that team was broken up.

Even so, that week was some experience. At the end of the season, even after going down, we had a parade around the city with the cup. 

It was during my time at Wigan, under Roberto, that I started to think about the game differently, and gain more of an interest in its intricacies. Those thoughts continued in my last year as a player, at Hull in 2016/17 – the last six months of which was an amazing time under Marco Silva.

That was when I really started to think about my future as a coach.

Author: The Coaches' Voice

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