Michael Ihiekwe has discussed his move to Blackpool after joining the Seasiders on a three-year deal following his Sheffield Wednesday departure.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00Obviously, you'd be silly not to listen to other clubs
00:03and their pitches and stuff like that,
00:05but as soon as I met Steve Bruce, like I said earlier,
00:08it was a big point for me to work with someone like that.
00:12And he told me about the club and ambitions
00:15and what the plans are and stuff like that.
00:17So, yeah, straight away, it was more or less,
00:20that was top of my list.
00:23Given your record in Ligue 1,
00:24I'm guessing you're not going to join any club
00:25that you don't think can push at the top end of the table.
00:28Yeah, exactly that.
00:30I spoke to him and he said the plans,
00:33what he wanted for the season and stuff like that.
00:35That was definitely in the plans.
00:37So, like you said, I still want to be ambitious.
00:40I want to play in the league above.
00:43So, hopefully, we can make that happen.
00:46I know the squad's pretty burnt at the moment,
00:48as you'd expect at the start of summer,
00:50but when you look at the players who were key last year
00:52who are still there, does that sort of excite you
00:54that you've got that backbone of a team
00:55that can be competitive?
00:57Yeah, definitely.
00:58That's what you need at this level.
01:00You need a strong backbone and the squad's really good at the minute.
01:05Obviously, just missed out on the playoffs last season.
01:09So, hopefully, we can make a few little adjustments
01:12and start the season well and go on from there.
01:16Looking forward to that defensive competition.
01:17Obviously, Oli Casey was a standout player for Blackpool last year
01:20and Fraser Harswell has joined as well.
01:22So, are you looking forward to competing with those two?
01:24Definitely, yeah.
01:25Like you said, that's a strong group of centre-backs,
01:29which only bodes well, really.
01:31You push each other on throughout the season.
01:33And, obviously, you want to keep your shirts,
01:36but that pushes you on as a player, definitely.
01:38So, that's what you need, definitely.
01:41Have you given a three-year deal?
01:42Does that just show, from your point of view,
01:44how much more you've got to give?
01:46Even though, obviously, probably 10 years ago,
01:48playing with the 30s, you'd think one-year deals at the time.
01:50But do you think, obviously, football's changed,
01:52football's an outfitter?
01:54Yeah, yeah, definitely.
01:56Yeah, like I said, I'm always still wanting to improve.
02:00Still got plenty of years of playing.
02:03So, like you said, you keep yourself fit nowadays
02:05throughout the season and the off-season as well.
02:08So, yeah, that's what I'll be planning to do.
02:11I know there's, obviously, problems at Sheffield Wednesday
02:14at the moment, but was it disappointing to leave
02:17having been, you know, an important player for them
02:19in the second half of the season,
02:20won your place back?
02:23Yeah, yeah, it's football for you, though, isn't it?
02:25And, you know, managers or staff make certain decisions
02:30and you have to deal with that.
02:31And that's what happened that Wednesday.
02:34So, great group of lads, great staff there.
02:37So, I wish them nothing but the best.
02:38Even though, obviously, you ultimately left,
02:42were you pleased with, sort of, the point you proved
02:43for yourself in that second half of the campaign
02:45and, you know, how much football you did play
02:47and, obviously, player of the month, one season as well?
02:51Yeah, throughout me the whole time now.
02:53I've got fond memories there, ups and downs.
02:57I had a bad knee injury in my first season,
03:00but I was able to get back in time for the playoffs
03:02and, obviously, get promoted with them that first season.
03:05So, yeah, I've got brilliant, brilliant memories there
03:08and enjoyed my time there, definitely.
03:11Well, David Downs have been involved in taking you
03:13to Wednesday all those years ago
03:15and, obviously, now to Blackpool.
03:17Yeah, yeah, I was in contact with Downs.
03:20He was a big part of it as well
03:22and he's a brilliant guy.
03:24He's really good at his job and stuff.
03:26So, yeah, I knew him.
03:27He brought me in on Wednesday
03:28and I had plenty of conversations with him, yeah,
03:32before I signed at Blackpool.
03:34Yeah, was he the first person to pitch a project
03:36and say, you know, this is what Steve Bruce wants to do?
03:39Yeah, yeah, he was in the meeting
03:41when I first met Steve Bruce
03:42and, like you said, he just told me what their plans are
03:46and, like you said, pitched it to me.
03:49And, obviously, knowing him from before,
03:51you get that trust as well straight away.
03:53So, yeah, it was a good conversation.
03:58I'm trying to think it off my head.
03:59I know, obviously, George Barriers from Wednesday
04:00was on loan at Blackpool last season.
04:02Is there anyone else who you know personally
04:04or give you a heads up of what you can expect
04:07at Bloomfield Road?
04:08Yeah, I was with Ashley Fletcher at Wednesday as well.
04:11He was on loan there at Wednesday.
04:13So, I spoke to him, yeah,
04:15and he pretty much said what I said earlier.
04:18It's a good group of lads, quite a young team,
04:20but a close-knit group.
04:23So, it's always good to know someone
04:25who's already in the building
04:26and, you know, pick their brain a little bit
04:28on what the club's got to offer.
04:31And, yeah, he loves it.
04:32He loves it at the club
04:33and he's had a really good season last season, didn't he?
04:35So, hopefully, he can replicate that this season.
04:39Yeah, it must be nice to see, obviously,
04:41Ashley has been open about the struggles,
04:43you know, in the years before he joined Blackpool.
04:45So, to see someone, you know,
04:46obviously who works hard behind the scenes
04:48to get his rewards
04:49must make it, you know,
04:50you must think, yeah,
04:51this is a really good environment
04:52for myself as well.
04:54Yeah, it's credit to him,
04:55the season he had last season
04:56and the staff to, you know,
04:57to be able to bring that out of him.
04:59Yeah, he just needed to play football
05:02and stuff like that,
05:03but, obviously, it was a big credit
05:05to Steve Bruce to give him that confidence
05:08to have the season he had.
05:10So, yeah, he had a really good season last season.
05:13So, yeah, like I said,
05:15hopefully he can replicate that this season.
05:16When you look back to, obviously,
05:19younger days as football,
05:20you were with, obviously,
05:21Liverpool and Wolves
05:21and released by Wolves Club
05:22and you had to sort of build your way back up.
05:24How proud of you, sort of,
05:25the career you've built and, you know,
05:28obviously you're always seeing football players
05:29get released and then work their way back up
05:30and prove people wrong.
05:32Yeah, it's always been a thing
05:33in my career,
05:35having to bounce back from adversity and stuff.
05:39I don't think it's certain you're probably
05:40truly appreciating until you retire
05:42and you can look back on your career.
05:45You've always got your job on hand
05:47and what you want to do in the future.
05:49So, it's probably something I'll look back
05:50and be proud of.
05:50But, for now, I just want to keep improving,
05:53hopefully get another promotion.
05:56That'll be the aim in my time.
05:58I'm here at Blackpool, definitely.
06:00I know at other clubs
06:01you've been a vocal figure in the dressing room.
06:03Do you obviously walk straight in at Blackpool
06:05and sort of show your experience,
06:07show your past wisdom?
06:10Yeah, yeah.
06:10I'll just go in, be myself
06:12and hopefully, yeah,
06:13that'll come out
06:14and, like I said,
06:17I've got a lot of experience to bring
06:19and I just want to hopefully
06:20help the team,
06:22help the players around me
06:23and try and make them better players.
06:26Just do that, yeah, really.