Dan Burn reveals sporting legends that had audience with Newcastle United players at training ground
Newcastle United star Dan Burn says Toon players have received some useful advice and tips on the high-performance mentality from club legend Nobby Solano and England cricketing legend Steve Harmison.
Howe was keen to invite some of the sport’s biggest names to the club’s training ground to share their experiences and chat with the players after the Benton sessions. Solano spent some time speaking to the club’s South American stars Bruno Guimaraes, Miguel Almiron and Joelinton and met the rest of the squad before they were able to witness some of the Peruvian’s best moments in a black and white shirt.
For Burn, meeting Solano was a chance to meet one of the legends he saw in Sir Bobby Robson’s Champions League line-up. Harmison spoke to players about the high-octane opportunities in sport and the levels of intensity he used as a star of England and Durham to blow batting lineups.
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Burn told Chronicle Live: “Steve Harmison and Nobby Solano walked in. It shares their experiences and we take small bits of what they said and apply it to the way we work.
“Obviously not everything they say will be relevant to the situation we find ourselves in. For example in Steve Harmison’s case it’s a different sport but there’s a mentality about pro sport in general that you can pass on, I think it was important and it’s good to get a different perspective.
“You can delve into your own ideas. For us we have the older guys like Kieran Trippier who played at the highest level. I haven’t played nearly as high as Tripps, but I feel like I have the experience that I’ve been able to pass on to the other guys who may never have played at Wembley before or haven’t played games like that.”
Burn certainly did it much earlier in his career at Wembley Stadium, as a decade ago in front of 41,955 fans he scored with Yeovil Town against Brentford in what proved to be the League One play-off final winners. So this time Burn will be looking for more of the same.
The tall defender, who inscribed himself in Geordie folklore with a crucial goal against Leicester City in the quarter-finals before an unforgettable dance in the dressing room, now insists it must be about warm hearts and cool heads under the Wembley arch.
Burn told me, “I think so. You have to understand the passion of the city and the fans and we will convey that to the boys. Not that they need to be reminded, we have a very good group here and they understand what it means to town.
“Guys who aren’t from Newcastle or from this country, you won’t be short of guys to tell you what it means. It’s just understanding how big the game is for Newcastle but not letting that affect your mentality or emotions.”
However, the 6ft 7in defender has never let fame get to his head – simply because family life won’t allow it. The Blyth boy doesn’t have time to worry too much outside of the training field.
He quipped, “Having a two year old and a four year old helps! For the guys who don’t have kids and families here, they might struggle a bit more, but I don’t have time to think about it.
“It’s going back, school run, crib and relaxation, so we won’t think about it too much until maybe we travel and get there. I’m 30 now and have a lot of experience in football.
“If I were 21 it would be very different but I feel quite relaxed and I feel like I have a cold mentality when it comes to football now.”
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