Vance said: “He got playing for us in men’s football at a young age, wasn’t there long, and then he went to Bristol during Covid, so he left his home, was on his own in Covid in Bristol, and that was hard for him.
“Then, in the Championship, when he first broke into the team, I think he was played at right-back, which just shows that he was that good, but they didn’t want to put him in his proper position.
“And when he went to get his move, he did his knee in really badly, and it looked like it wasn’t going to happen. And then luckily the move happened. Then he did his knee again. So he kept getting setbacks, but he kept fighting and kept coming through.
“And even last year at Bournemouth, he wasn’t first choice to start with. He couldn’t get in the side… he’d get taken off after about 60 minutes or so – that was frustrating for him. Then, I think, towards the end, when he got his fitness up, he then became a starter, and he was a 90-minute player and wasn’t getting taken off. So, he’s a fighter as well.”
