CYRUS IS THE CENTRE OF ATTENTION RIGHT NOW
Christie told of role just before kick-off
CYRUS CHRISTIE is the epitome of the ‘good pro’ Eamon Dunphy expertly depicted in his celebrated book, ‘Only A Game?’ He is a manager’s dream. Always thinking of the team and placing its needs above his own. As a Premier League and international footballer, Christie could have notions. No chance.
His reaction to being told by Martin O’Neill 90 minutes before kick-off on Saturday that he would be playing in a three-man midfield, rather than his preferred right back role, said it all.
Christie had an inkling something was up in training but actually thought he would be switched to the opposite flank. Clutching the Man of the Match award (an impressive piece of Waterford Crystal) as he left the Ireland dressing room, he could point to a night’s good work.
‘The manager didn’t really say anything to me, and Gupps [Steve Guppy] kind of mentioned to me about swapping positions. I just thought it was going to be left wing back so it did come as a bit of surprise.
‘I mess about there [in midfield] sometimes in training but the manager asked me to go out there and put in a performance, it was one of them as well, it was a bit of a free pass if I had a bit of a bad game but I didn’t look at it like that,’ Christie, who last played a midfield role as a 14-year-old in the Coventry City academy, explained.
‘I just stayed positive, got myself ready and I prepared as if I knew I was going to play, and whatever position it was going to be I was going to put my all in.
‘The manager spoke to me when we got to the stadium and asked me if was comfortable playing in there. I told him I was perfectly fine and he told me to play my game, get out, get on the ball, drive forward and also cover Matt [Doherty] with Sisto.
‘The manager has full confidence in me which is great, he gives me the backing and that’s fantastic for me. That’s all that matters at the end of the day, is the opinion of the manager and the people who employ me.
‘I kind of had a picture from training the other day. Sometimes the manager doesn’t give too much away. There are a lot of players to choose from. Before he read the team sheet out he told me.
‘As a footballer you always have to be ready, you have to be ready for your opportunity and that’s what I do. I do it for my club as well. I’ve played a lot over the last few years and 110 per cent is what I give.
‘Some people think my attitude isn’t great because I’ve got a laid back manner and it probably doesn’t look like I’m trying but I’m running around everywhere and doing what I’m good at. I always seem to come in for a bit of stick but it’s one of them, I just take the good with the bad and working hard and doing my thing.’
One of the most vocal critics of Christie recently was Match of the Day pundit and one-time Premier League winner Alan Shearer. The former Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United striker singled the Fulham man out for his disappointing display in the recent 5-1 defeat to Arsenal.
‘Someone told me about me about it and I turned my notifications off on Twitter. I always seem to get abuse whether I play well or whether I played badly,’ he rued.
‘I’ll always have believe in myself, I’ll always back myself and my ability. I go home every day and I go and do my extra training away from the training pitch, to try and make myself the best that I can be.
‘You know, sometimes the rewards aren’t there straight away but in the long run it will pay off. Shearer’s got his opinion, at the end of the day he has to sit in the studio, he has to be positive and he has to be negative and I was the one to be chosen to be negative,’ the 26-year-old reasoned.
‘There are quite a lot of pundits nowadays and that’s what they’re paid to do, to be negative, and it was it is.
‘We’re all the same when you’re in the stand, you always seem to be a better player. I’m the same when I watch football, you know? And then obviously it’s a completely different game when you’re out there.
‘You just have to respect the opinions of people, everyone’s going to have that. At the end of the day, that’s what makes football, people have their opinions and I’m not going to get disheartened about what he said.
‘We live in a negative world, and that’s what it is. I am a positive person, I am laid back. I work hard and the rewards come and that is why I have played so many games in my career. I want to keep pushing on and making myself to be the best player I can be.’