Czech mate gives Ashby a full-back strategy to be a king across the board
He’s been labelled the new Glen Johnson. But Scotland Under-21 right-back Harrison Ashby insists it’s another West Ham hero he takes inspiration from – Czech full-back, Vladimír Coufal.
The 19-year-old is one of the Hammers’ most highly-rated youngsters and is an understudy to Coufal, having already made his debut for the London club last season.
Ashby played for Scot Gemmill’s side as they went down to a disappointing 1-0 loss to top-seeds, Denmark, at Tynecastle.
However, he impressed, and – due to his pace – has been likened in style by Irons fans to the 54-times-capped England defender, who started his career at West Ham before moving on to Chelsea and Liverpool.
Now the kid is studying 29-year-old Coufal, who is regarded as one of the best fullbacks in the Premier League.
Asked who he modelled his game on, Ashby replied: “Vladimír Coufal, all day long. He’s one of those experienced boys who knows what to do in most situations.
“He plays quite similar to me, but I feel I can learn a lot more from him as I watch him play. His decision-making is excellent.
“There was a moment in the Denmark game where I went bombing on when I should have sat in, and he would have known that.
“It’s the little things like that which can make a massive difference in my game as well.
“My season is going very well. I have three goals and three assists in seven games for the reserves. I’m training with the first team 24/7, so I’m pushing myself to be the best that I can be.
“West Ham can see that and when the opportunity arrives, I will take it.
“I don’t know why I am so quick, but I’ve had that asset since I was a kid.
“We do sprint training all the time, and I can only say thanks to my fitness and conditioning coach at West Ham. We do gym work a lot, and having that speed helps my game.”
The Under-21s now face two crunch games at Tannadice next month, against Kazakhstan and Belgium.
And while the latter opponent appears to be a daunting prospect, Ashby – whose father Ben made almost 300 appearances for Gillingham, and who qualifies for Scotland through his grandad – is convinced they can stun them.
“I’m 100% confident we can pull of a big result in this group,” he said.
“I have total faith in this group, and I actually believe we could beat teams like Denmark three or four-nil if it came together.
“One goal can change a game, and I believe we are strong favourites to win these games next month.
“Losing to Denmark was a bitter pill to swallow as the squad is one of the strongest we’ve had for a long time at Under-21 level.
“All of the boys put in a massive shift, so defeat was hard to take. But if you don’t take your chances in any game, you aren’t going to win it.
“We must have had six or seven. But Denmark took the one chance they had.
“Nobody played badly, everyone put a shift in. So now we need to re-group and focus on the next two games.”