Arsenal defender Ben White described his loan stint at Newport County as "one of the best years of my life".
White made his international bow for England against Switzerland on Saturday night to complete a stunning rise to football stardom for the 24-year-old. The centre-back moved to the Emirates Stadium from Brighton for a fee of £50million last summer, and despite early criticism from the likes of Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville, that price tag is looking like a snip.
White's elevation to international recognition was aided by a number of loan spells away from the Seagulls during his early years, with each move being a further rung up the ladder. Newport, Peterborough United and Leeds United all had White in their ranks for a spell, and it was his time in south Wales during the 2017/18 season that really sticks out for the youngster.
“It was one of the best years of my life,” White told the Telegraph.
“I’d gone from playing in an academy where everything is nice and you have everything you want. And then you go there and everything is completely different. You’re having a curry for your pre-match meal! Everything was totally different... in my first game there was a punch-up at half-time between our own players in our own dressing room.”
During his time with County, for whom he played 51 times, White came up against future England colleague and north London rival Harry Kane in an FA Cup tie, drawing 1-1 before losing the replay at Wembley 2-0.
"I don’t think I ever thought about playing for England then,” White added. “I was just thinking I need to be good enough to play in League Two. And I think every year I have managed to prove that I’m good enough to play at the level I’m at even though I’ve gone up leagues.”
During his time at Rodney Parade, White believes his leadership skills with honed and picked out one player in particular for helping him become a more rounded player and individual.
“I think that’s the thing that I have struggled with most through my career. I think I have learnt from different teams I’ve played for and different players I’ve played with to get those different skills in my game,” he added, singling out Mark O’Brien for praise, who he replaced in the County team. “He was the best guy to have around and he helped me massively even though I had taken his place."
