Hibs’ new loan signing Daniel Boateng was paraded at the East Mains Training Centre yesterday where he admitted that his knowledge of Scottish football comes from the internet although he was aware of the pedigree of manager Terry Butcher and believes that learning from the former England captain can only help his career.
Speaking at the weekly press conference, the 6ft 2in defender said: “I played a game against Chelsea on the Friday and then my agent called me and said that Terry Butcher was interested in signing me. I looked at my options and I thought ‘why not come to Scotland?’ I was certainly up for the challenge although I didn’t know too much about Hibs and I had to go on the internet and Google them. I knew they were a big club in the Scottish Premier League and at that point I thought ‘why not.’”
“I thought I am a defender myself and he (Butcher) played for England back in the day so I knew he could be of help to myself.”
Arsene Wenger has already given the youngster his debut in the full Arsenal side and he has experience of playing alongside some of the biggest names in the game.
He continued: “I came into the Arsenal first team against Bolton at 19 and in that squad was Thomas Vermaelen, Yossi Benayoun, Andrei Arshavin, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Per Mertesacker.
“Training with the first team on a regular basis is no big deal but when you step out on to the pitch in front of 60,000 supporters at the Emirates Stadium, that is exciting and that’s what footballers want to do and you can’t get enough of it.”
If Boateng expected an easy ride in the SPFL, then his first training session with his new team mates quickly changed his mind.
“The Hibs squad is very good, however the game is so physical in Scotland. I have only taken part in one training session so far and I did not expect it to be that physical, but it’s is nothing that I can’t handle but I will get used to it. I will learn to handle the physical approach and make it suit my game as I am up for the challenge. It is best for me and my career if I play games now and that is what I want to do. I believe I can do well in Scotland.”
Boateng will join an illustrious list of players who have played for both Hibs and Arsenal over the years if he pulls on the green and white jersey this weekend against Raith Rovers in the Scottish Cup. Willie Harper, Joe Baker, Peter Marinello and Alex Cropley immediately spring to mind, although more recently Anthony Stokes, Dean Shiels and Graham Stack made the journey north.
John graduated from Telford College in 2010 with an HNC in Practical Journalism and since then he worked for the North Edinburgh News, The Southern Reporter, the Irish News Review and The Edinburgh Reporter. In addition he has been published in the Edinburgh Evening News and the Hibernian FC Programme.
