Former Sunderland youth coach Kevin Ball says he is 'proud' to see ex-Black Cats pair Jordan Pickford and Jordan Henderson representing England together at the World Cup.
Pickford has played all four games for the Three Lions in Qatar, while Henderson opened the scoring for England in their 3-0 victory over Senegal in the Round of 16 on Sunday.
Ball, who also played 340 league games for Sunderland as a player, served a number of different coaching roles at the club during an 18-year period. He also coached Pickford and Henderson during their respective spells in the Sunderland youth ranks, and reveals that they have still remained 'humble' since their rise to fame.
"I always say if you ever need to speak to me you know where I am," Ball told talkSPORT. "I'll drop them a message now again and the nice thing is you always get a prompt reply from them, which is great.
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He added: "I took my grandson to see Jordan [Henderson] on his book signing in Sunderland not long ago. I didn't tell him I was going. I queued up like everybody else and we turned up and waited for our book to be signed.
"And looking at his face was great when he was saw me standing in the queue but what frightened me more was when he stood up, I couldn't believe how big he was and how tall he was. All I kept thinking was if I played against you, what would I have to do against you?
"He was that good and strong looking but it was fabulous to see him. And I do the same with the other Jordan [Pickford] as well. Sometimes when he's up North, I say if you get five minutes to pop in for a cup of tea which he does.
"These lads lead busy lives but we all stay in touch. That in itself makes you feel a million dollars. I'm sat in my car now and I get quite emotional about it when you look at it like that. We've always been very proud of our players that have gone onto achieve stuff whether it be in football or outside of football.
"I think when you get to the stage that the two Jordan's have, and they're on the world stage and all of the eyes of the world are on them. They perform at such a high level but then the fact that they still remember what you helped them do in the past is fabulous from them and it's testament to them as people."
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