Lewis Guy on signing for United
New signing Lewis Guy spoke to us about the challenge ahead shortly after signing his new deal with the club.
“I’ve been at the club for a few weeks now but it’s good to finally get it sorted,” he said. It brings a bit of stability and it feels good to be here and to be around familiar faces and accents.
“I’ve enjoyed myself over the last month and it seems like a good place to be. The important thing for me to say is that I’m not just along for the ride – I’m here for my career and to do as well as I can for the club and myself.”
“This is a new challenge for me,” he confirmed. “I’m only 27-years old and there’s still a lot that could happen to me in football terms. All I’ll do now is try and play as well as I can.
“I’ve been in the game long enough to know that you’re not going to play every week if the manager feels he needs to change things. I’ll do what I can to be involved as much as possible and to help the team.”
“The way the fans have reacted to this has been nice and it’s good to get that kind of support,” he admitted. “I can guarantee that I’ll be giving 100% for them every week. I can’t guarantee that I’ll play well but, if I don’t, it won’t be because I’m not trying. I really am here to do as well as I can.”
“There are a number of factors which helped me make my decision,” he explained. “I’ve heard good things about the manager and Graham Kavanagh and I like the way they try and do things.
“I think I’ve only won once in all of the games I’ve played against Carlisle so I’ve seen first hand that it’s good football. I spoke to the manager before pre-season and he has played a big part in me coming here.
“He told me his plans, and what he thought would happen going forward, and he told me to get here to try and earn myself a contract. That’s happened for me and I’m really pleased about that. You have to put a word in for the fans as well because they always get behind their team. That’s the way it should be and it’s a big factor in helping me to make a decision.”
“The good thing on the pitch is that I’m already getting an understanding with the other lads,” he said. “I like working with Lee Miller but it’s been just as good with Josh Gillies and Mark Beck. From what I’ve seen in training, and the games we’ve had, it doesn’t matter who the manager picks. We’ve all got an understanding with each other.
““I prefer to work off a big man. We have a few combinations we can use with the players we have so it’ll be good to get out there and try it all out.”
“I have come close to signing for Carlisle a couple of times before,” he admitted. “It didn’t happen then so it’s good to get the move I’ve been looking for over the last few years. I’ve always looked out for the Carlisle result. I’ve had friends who have played here, like Adam Collin and Neale McDermott, and I’ve always had a soft spot for the club.
“I suppose there’ll be a little bit more pressure on me with the fact that I’m back home. I won’t be able to get away from it if I have a bad game because there’ll always be a Carlisle fan, wherever I am.
“But I think I’d have to completely agree with what the gaffer said. It’s the most I’ve enjoyed my football for a while and I think you play better when that’s the case. I’m looking forward to showing people the best of what I can do.”
“There’s a real feeling of positivity around and we just need to build on that,” he told us. “There’s a fair bit of competition for places so I know I’m going to have to work hard.
“We have four or five players who could play up front and we can use different systems, so there are no guarantees for anyone. It’s a young squad but there is a bit of experience in there as well to make it a good mix. It’s an exciting time for the club because there is a group of them who look like they are going to develop into really good players. It’ll be good to help them if I can.”
“It was good to get that goal against Burnley,” he said. “I was thinking on the way to the game that it was important for me to get on the score sheet if the chance came along and I was delighted when that happened.
“It leaves a good impression on the fans and the manager if you do that. We then got the sin against Bolton and doing that against a Championship side is bound to give us confidence.
“We need to take that into the two games over the weekend and then we can look forward to the season starting.”
United Player subscribers can see a video interview with Lewis Guy now. Click HERE to go to the Player platform. Follow the same link for more information on United Player, and to subscribe.
