CHARLIE LINDSAY was thrilled to join boyhood heroes Rangers from Glentoran this summer and the recent Academy signing says midfield star Steven Davis is the perfect role model for him.
Charlie, who featured impressively for the Light Blues in the prestigious Alkass tournament earlier this year, made the move from Northern Ireland to Glasgow a few months ago and has settled in brilliantly so far.
The 16-year-old attacking player is delighted to have the captain of his country at the club with him and says Davis sets an excellent example for any young player.
Speaking as he helped promote The Rangers Youth Development company, whose annual donations to the Academy since 2002 have almost reached £9 million, Lindsay said: “I’ve loved every single second of it since I joined Rangers.
“I’ve always been made to feel really welcome and from day one I have been told about the standards you have to have to be a successful Rangers player.
“It’s a huge club with a great history and it was a no-brainer for me to sign for Rangers and I have loved it.
“Players like Steven Davis have come from Northern Ireland and joined this club and I really look up to him
“He is the perfect example of a model professional footballer. He is captain of the international team and he has had a great career.
“Just the example he sets and the way he lives his life is inspiring. He is at the later stages of his career but you wouldn’t think it as he is so fit.
“He’s an athlete and plays every day as if he is 20. I really look up to him.
“He has shown that if you look after your body well and do the right things you can have a long and successful career at the top level. “He always works so hard and its brilliant to see.”
Charlie joined Glentoran when he was 7-years-old and Rangers’ Irish scout Phil Cowen spotted his talent early on. The youngster featured for their first-team aged just 15 and now he is ready to learn all he can under the talented coaching and playing staff at Auchenhowie.
He said: “Playing for Glentoran’s first-team at 15 was unbelievable. I was there from 7 years old and progressed through the ranks.
“To get the chance to play for the first team at such a young age was brilliant and to be the youngest ever player to do it was mind-blowing.
“I’ve lived in East Belfast all my life so it was a really proud moment to make my debut for Glentoran.
“But now I am a Rangers player and I am so happy.
“Getting back playing properly again will be fantastic. I can’t wait for the season to start. I want to learn from the coaching staff and improve every day.
“The coaches here have been brilliant and they always put on really good sessions.
“They always explain in detail why they are doing things and there is always a really good method to the work.
“One of the main reasons I joined Rangers is because I could see a pathway to the first team.
“You can see players like Nathan Patterson have played for the first team and I would love to do the same in a few years.
“I am a very attack-minded player. I love getting the ball at my feet and turning and dribbling past players.
“I am quick and I like to score goals and create opportunities for my team mates. My first thought is always to get forward and I am not afraid on the pitch.
“I will always work hard and try and be the best player I possibly can. “My family have seen me in a few games for Rangers and it makes them really proud.
“I feel like I am doing them proud but I know this is just the start and I have a long way to go.
“I just need to keep working hard. The boys have made me feel really welcome and I know the training centre well. It is all really falling into place and now it’s about hard work, dedication and try and be the best I can every single day.
“My short-term goals are to keep working hard and improving. I want to come in here every day and get better.
“I don’t want to settle for second best and I want to push myself as far as I can go.
“Long-term I want to push myself into the Rangers first team and make an impact.
“I want to earn a shirt but I know that won’t happen without hard work and dedication.
“I need to be an athlete 24 hours a day to make it at the top and stay at the top.
“Rangers have looked after me brilliantly since the day I joined. They do so much for all the young players and they have made me feel at home and so welcome.
“It has been the perfect move for me. I’ve already had a taste of mixing with first-team players and it was really good to get a taste of the action with the B team when we played Dundee Utd recently.
“It was great to mix with a really high standard of players. I could get glimpses of exactly what the first-team players do and how hard they work on and off the pitch.
“It’s a great learning curve.
“And of course I loved every second of the Al Kass tournament earlier this year. It was a brilliant experience and I learned so much from it.
“Playing against different teams with different styles of play was a really steep learning curve but it was so beneficial.
“It’s all about hard work and dedication now for me and I want to learn and improve as much as I can every single day.”