Birmingham City attacker Patrick Roberts has offered advice to young Sunderland wingers Chris Rigg and Eli Mayenda.
A former Sunderland player, Roberts admits he follows his old club closely.
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“I look at myself when I was that age. I moved to Manchester City when I was 18 and I know how tough that was,” he told ChronicleLive.
“I know the level, I knew what you need to do. Maybe I didn’t make the most of it as I could have, but I kind of know what it was like. So even with Eliezer (Mayenda) I’d always speak to Eli.
“Even when he went on loan to Hibs he’d come back and maybe not be in the team. I’d always tell him, ‘Just keep going, you’ll always get a chance.’ And then obviously he did and then he was scoring goals for fun. I just said to him, ‘Listen, this is what it’s like’. Football is very up and down. You take the bad moments and when you have the good moments you really enjoy them because you know it’s always going to be up and down. That’s just the way life is.”
Roberts added, “I think it’s hard for young players to understand that. Because I’ve been through it personally it’s easier to understand. But I get it – as a young player you just want to play and you don’t think, ‘well the manager’s not playing me, have I done something wrong?’ It could be many things.
“But at the same time you’ve just got to get your head down and keep proving every day that you should be where you are. I think if there’s one bit of advice, maybe it’s just that – keep believing in your ability and just keep working hard, keep improving.
“You’ll always get your opportunity if you’re good enough. It’s just about taking it and enjoying it. And then riding through maybe some bad moments. When the good ones come, really cherish them, really take hold of it, really move on that and grow on that and become even better. That’s what I would say.”
