Talking of Matt Holland, found this old article about when he left West Ham after a discussion with Harry R.
Matt was a stylish midfield player for us and with Steve Jones (Matt’s tenant when at AFCB), we had two very good players from West Ham.
Article.
“He offered me a new deal but said I was going to be fifth or sixth choice central midfielder for him. At the age of 22, I couldn’t be sat not getting a kick, I needed to be getting regular first-team football so they did a deal with Bournemouth.”
The decision to move certainly worked out for Holland in the long run, and it’s a decision he would advise any young players not getting first-team football to make.
“I would say to any youngster, try to play in a first team somewhere. It just means so much more. Your three points might mean that you get into the play-offs or move out of the relegation zone.
“It toughens you up a bit too, and particularly when you’re coming from a Premier League club where everything’s done for you and the facilities are perfect, it gives you an idea about what it’s like lower down the leagues.
“Harry was always one to send his players out on loan. It gives you the hunger to want to go back and prove yourself because (at Bournemouth) we had to wash our own kit, we’d go up on the day to, say, Crewe away and have to meet at six in the morning.
“You’re in a bubble in the Premier League. You go down the leagues and it makes you appreciate what you’ve got in the Premier League.”
“I speak to lots of managers and coaches that say the hunger in young players isn’t what it once was. They’re given big money at the age of 17 or 18 as soon as they sign their first professional contract, and it’s all about the money rather than what you can achieve on the football field.
“I’m not saying all are like that because there are players out there that have still got that attitude, but there aren’t as many. Too many players are happy just to pick up a wage and be sat on a bench. I would say go and play in a first team.
“If you look back at your career and you’ve played 150 games, you might have done nothing. Go and play 600, 700 games, that’s what it’s all about, to look back and have all those memories.”
https://www.planetfootball.com/in-d...iew-ipswich-charlton-turning-down-villa-more/