The ruthless Crystal Palace lessons that have shaped Motherwell transfer arrival after Eagles exit
The defender made a transfer move from Crystal Palace to Motherwell this summer.
Kofi Balmer says lessons at Crystal Palace from Patrick Vieira have helped mould him as he starts life at Motherwell.
The Northern Irish centre-back netted his first goal for the club in a 3-0 win over Edinburgh City on Saturday. He moved to Fir Park this summer after time with the Premier League side based in London, having made his name as a promising prospect on the domestic scene in Northern Ireland.
While at Crystal Palace, legendary Arsenal midfielder Vieira was his boss, and that time with has been a vital learning ground as he proceeds. He said: "Patrick Vieira is a massive name in football worldwide. He's won big trophies. So going into Palace and having that sort of person teaching you and keeping you right every day in training was something you don't expect.
"Before every training session he was constantly working on me, on having quick feet, and games of two-touch to get me moving quicker. Two-touch with Patrick was difficult though! He was ruthless and he'd try to stitch you up, but I was only going to learn from it. It was amazing to be involved in that.
"I appreciate everything he did for me. He gave me the chance to be involved with the first team at Palace and be on the bench. That really helped me with my confidence, and I've been able to progress.
Settling in has been easy for Balmer at Motherwell, who hopes to continue building on his good start. Next up in the Premier Sports Cup group stage is Montrose away on Tuesday night before games against Clyde and Partick Thistle.
He added: “The goal was a bonus for me, but as a defender the clean sheet is all you’re looking for. For the first game, a 3-0 win, I don’t think you can ask for much more. It’s up to us to kick on and keep the momentum going.
“With the header I probably connected too well with it, and it hit the post, but every ball that came into the box was brilliant. Hopefully throughout the season and in the next matches we can keep doing that, and keep more clean sheets.
“I feel like I’ve settled in well, the lads have been brilliant to me when I first came in. I’ve hit the ground running and I’m happy as it is, but it’s up to myself to keep doing that, to keep performing well.”