Jose Mourinho is inspiring a new dawn on the sunny sands of the Kentish coast.
Fourteen years ago, Ben Greenhalgh reigned supreme on reality TV show Football's Next Star to earn a life-changing six-month professional deal with Inter Milan.
Now he's utilising the expert advice and guidance he received from The Special One to kickstart a new era at Non-League sleeping giant Margate as he gears up for his first crack at management.
"There's not many people that when they talk, you listen," said the 32-year-old after being unveiled as Gate's new player-manager. But with him, the room would always go quiet.
"Luckily I had a few interactions with Jose, he told me 'your passion can never drop, things will always happen in football but it doesn't matter - as long as you keep your passion'. I've always carried that with me."
Fans say the same thing as Scott Parker earns shock move to Champions League
Greenhalgh never featured for Inter despite penning a fresh one-year contract extension, training with the first-team and hitting eight goals in 12 appearances on loan at Como in Serie C.
However, the unforgettable, whirlwind experience of travelling with Mourinho's squad to Madrid for their 2010 Champions League final triumph over Bayern Munich proved invaluable.
He even bagged a winner's medal before forging a highly-successful Non-League career which also included a stint in the Scottish Premiership with Inverness Caledonian Thistle.
The attacking midfielder explained: "Because I wasn't playing at the time, it probably wasn't ideal but it was incredible just to be part of it all. It will stick with me forever and I can take that into the world of football I'm now going into.
"I'll always be known as the guy that's got a Champions League medal and I'm fine by that but I also have aspirations of my own to fulfil."
Ben Greenhalgh won a professional contract with Inter Milan after winning Football's Next Star (©Gary Prior)A high turnover of players saw Margate succumb to relegation from the Isthmian League Premier Division last season but Greenhalgh is refusing to turn his back on the club - even though he does not belong at this level.
Instead, he intends to channel his inner Mourinho by assembling a smaller, tight-knit squad that is prepared to move mountains for their manager in the quest for promotion.
"Every single player would play for Mourinho, he was the best manager in the world at the time," added Greenhalgh.
"The aura that he had around the training ground, changing room and football club was remarkable, he just had 16 players that would play for him and do absolutely everything to win.
Ben Greenhalgh (@margate_fc)"I still don't think Inter had better players than the likes of Chelsea, Barcelona and Bayern, who they beat to win the Champions League. That's testament to Mourinho, who squeezed everything he could from the group."
Liverpool coach admits seeking Virgil van Dijk solution that "never happened"
Greenhalgh, who also worked under Gus Poyet at Brighton, the Cowley brothers [Danny and Nicky] at Concord Rangers and Terry Butcher in Scotland, is not fazed by the challenges presented by juggling playing and managerial commitments.
He concluded: "I want to take various bits from their managerial styles and implement my own brand of football. To those that have said player-managers haven't worked in the past - those people aren't yourself.
"Luckily it's down to me to see if I can make it work and get Margate back to winning ways and back where we belong. This has come at a good time - maybe a bit earlier than planned - but I'm so excited."
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
