I have so much to thank Ehiogu for, admits Dom
DOM BALL has revealed how the tutelage of the late Ugo Ehiogu will remain an inspiration throughout his playing career.
The death of Ehiogu at the age of 44 last year came as a huge shock to Ball who had been coached and advised by the former Rangers defender at Tottenham Hotspur.
Ehiogu (below) joined the academy as Ball reached reserve-team level and was instrumental in driving through his loan season of 2015/16 at Ibrox.
‘As a player and a person, Ugo has left his mark on me,’ said Ball. ‘Little things that coaches say at times, not even big things, often stick with you. Ugo had quite a lot of them with me.
‘It was the one-to-one guidance and coaching where he was excellent.
‘When he pulled you for individual guidance on when to play a certain type of ball, timing of headers, clearances, this was priceless.
‘We used to work on that all the time. He was very keen on the detail of clearances and headers, the positioning of your body.
‘Maybe we would do six different types and work on the composure to clear the ball. He made sure we were good at that. He coached me for two years in a very important period of my career.’
Ehiogu, a Premier League star for Middlesbrough and Aston Villa, suffered a cardiac arrest at Spurs’ training centre on April 20, 2017 and passed away in the early hours of the following morning. A year earlier, he had been so proud of Ball playing a part in his former club Rangers beating Celtic in the William Hill Scottish Cup semi-final. ‘He was in touch throughout that time in Glasgow,’ said Ball. ‘Especially after any game on TV, the Old Firm game, there was always a message. ‘I always remember how good a guy he was, always willing to give advice. He had been at Rangers and was so excited about it for me. ‘I didn’t know what it was going to be like moving up to Glasgow, at 20 years old. ‘He told me stories, kind of forced it over the line to me that you should go. ‘And he was right. Tim Sherwood and Les Ferdinand were my coaches before then but the time I really needed help when I was a centre-half, I had Ugo — and I’m very thankful for that.’