Harris relishing chance to reprise youth-team tussles with Sterling
Wednesday midfielder desperate to make up for lost time against City, writes Mike Mcgrath
Kadeem Harris had no doubts about Raheem Sterling reaching the top of football when he played against him as a teenager in north-west London. There will be a reunion at Hillsborough when they face each other in the FA Cup tonight, the pair having last played for opposing teams when they grew up in Brent before taking different paths.
Seven trophies are in Sterling’s collection, plus a World Cup semi-final appearance with England. For Harris, this season at Sheffield Wednesday has been about getting back on the pitch regularly after frustrations during an eight-year spell at Cardiff.
He was injury-hit, out of favour at times and on a free transfer in the summer.
He may have thought his luck was out when Steve Bruce signed him at Wednesday, then left for Newcastle almost immediately.
But the 26-year-old says he is stronger for the experience and relishing the chance to impress against Manchester City.
“At youth-team level, I played against Raheem a few times. We are from near enough the same area and we have some mutual friends,” Harris says. “He was a couple of years younger than me but was playing up a couple of years when I was at Wycombe and he was at QPR. We haven’t played each other since. It wouldn’t have surprised me at all if you told me at the time that was how it would be.
“He was always hot property but it’s harder to play up at a young age because, physically, he wasn’t as developed as the older boys. The differences are massive at that age because everyone is developing. He was standing out in games, so it doesn’t surprise me where he is now.”
Harris is relishing the chance to impress in front of the TV cameras against City. He hit the headlines in his career before Sterling when he became Wycombe’s youngest player at 16 years and 201 days, yet his spell with Cardiff was not always smooth.
He was in manager Neil Warnock’s plans, then suffered an ankle injury. By the time he returned, Warnock’s players were on the brink of reaching the Premier League and he could not break back into the team. Harris still managed 15 appearances last season, including a goal in a win over Fulham, and he believes Warnock made him a stronger character.
“He demands it from his players. It helps when you play under him,” Harris says. “Initially, I was in his plans. I would like to think I was one of his favourites at the start, but I had a few injuries that kept me out for the whole season and, in that time, the team was really successful with new players doing well. “Of course, I’ve been frustrated. Not playing as much as I wanted makes you a strong person. I’m very headstrong and that had a big part to play. When you get a taste of it, you know that is where you want to be. I’ll be doing