London, March 18 (IANS) Dan Burn wrote his name into Newcastle United’s history books on Sunday as he found the back of the net in the Carabao Cup final, helping Newcastle United to lift their first domestic trophy in 70 years. It follows on from the defender’s first-ever call-up to represent his country last Friday.
The tall center back claims he felt overlooked during former head coach Gareth Southgate’s tenure at the helm of the national team but is ready to grasp the opportunity with Thomas Tuchel, who will be representing England for the first time during the upcoming international fixtures.
“I feel I’ve got a good few years in me, no retirement yet! I think I have been overlooked, but I understood it – what Gareth did to bring England where it was to where it is now. In my opinion, he treated it more like a club, which worked well for them. It wasn’t like it was back in the day.
“It was about the togetherness, but that worked against me a little bit. So, when the new manager came in, it was kind of a new slate. Luckily, the new manager has taken a chance on me and I want to grasp the opportunity.”
Burn could make his international debut against Albania or Latvia in a Wembley double header.
Ashington-born, Blyth-raised Burn has earned his debut call-up at the age of 32 as he continues a remarkable journey which has seen him released from the Magpies’ Academy and work in a supermarket before joining Darlington and eventually coming back to his boyhood club to play and score for them in the Champions League.
Burn claimed he was proud to represent his hometown. “The North East is a bit overlooked in football. There’s not as many teams up there for the pools of players to come through. I am very proud to come from Newcastle – I love telling people where I am from,” he said.
After finishing as runners up in the previous two European Championships and losing out in the semifinals of the 2018 FIFA WC under the stewardship of Southgate, Tuchel enters the fold with the Three Lions desperate for a trophy. With the next major tournament being the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Burn has already set his eyes on completing his childhood dream of representing the country at the largest stage of them all.
“I’m trying to take it camp by camp and make a big impression as I can and try make the next camp. Every little kid’s dream is to play in a World Cup,” he added.
–IANS
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