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When Sean O’Driscoll received a message to call Brendan Rodgers back in June he was convinced the Liverpool FC boss was after a progress report on Sheyi Ojo.

The teenage winger had been part of the England Under-18s squad O’Driscoll had been working with but Rodgers’ reason for getting in touch was very different.

The Northern Irishman wanted the 58-year-old to swap his development role with the Football Association for life as his new No 2 at Anfield. Rodgers had identified O’Driscoll as the perfect replacement for Colin Pascoe, who was relieved of his duties following the club’s end of season review.

The offer came out of the blue and O’Driscoll took his time to consider it before deciding to grasp the opportunity.

“I thought Brendan wanted to know how Sheyi had done,” O’Driscoll said.

“But when I rang him back it was something else. I was like ‘okay, hang on’.

“Yes, I was surprised. I looked at it for what it is. You do your due diligence.

IN PICTURES: Liverpool train ahead of Bournemouth

“I was in a job I really believed in at the FA - trying to develop young players. It was a very interesting project.

“When the offer came I spent two weeks trying to find someone to convince me not to do it. I could not find anyone so here I am.

“It’s exciting. I never thought of it as anything other than a football club with a great tradition and history – all the things people say about it.

“To experience it first hand has been the biggest shock and a pleasant surprise in some senses. People can talk about it but when you go to the other side of the world and see how many Liverpool supporters there are it’s amazing.”

O’Driscoll finds himself working in the Premier League for the first time after two decades of coaching and managing in the lower leagues.

The former Fulham midfielder arrives at Anfield following spells with Bournemouth, Doncaster, Crawley, Nottingham Forest and Bristol City prior to taking over England Under-19s last September.

A mutual respect had existed between Rodgers and O’Driscoll since their Watford and Doncaster sides first locked horns in the Championship.

Two years ago Rodgers had spoken in glowing terms about O’Driscoll’s expertise when talking about talented British coaches who are committed to playing an expansive style.

“Look at Sean O’Driscoll, he is one of the best coaches I have ever come across,” Rodgers said. “He has never had a chance in the top flight. His teams were expressive, had movement, they were technical, but he will probably never get a chance at a higher level.”

That tribute was news to O’Driscoll, who dismissed suggestions that he has belatedly realised a dream by landing a job at an elite club.

"I’ve always had great expectations, rather than great goals"

“I didn’t read what Brendan said, I’m not one for the media,” he said.

“I was late into football. I was 22 before I actually got into professional football. I wasn’t brought up with any ideas of how it should be so when I walked into the club my perceptions were totally different to everyone else’s and have been the same ever since.

“As a player I was always asking why were we doing certain things, just so I could understood and have a better idea of what they wanted from me.

“I’ve always tried to do my best every day. I’ve always had great expectations, rather than great goals. People say to me you need goals, but I meet a lot of people who say things but their behaviour doesn’t match up to that.

“If I wanted to be Real Madrid manager, why aren’t I learning Spanish? It’s rubbish, really. People say I want to be this, I want to be that, but then don’t put in the work that needs to be done.

“Did I ever want to be a Premier League manager? It never really entered my head. I just wanted to do a good job wherever I was. That was my motivation and what kept me going. You try and keep things on an even keel.

“Am I doing the best I can? Yeah. Lose two on the spin, I’m still doing the best I can, win four games on the trot, it’s the same. That keeps my feet on the ground.”

“I think Brendan wants me to challenge and say what I think"

It’s that kind of no-nonsense approach that appealed to Rodgers. Liverpool’s new assistant boss is no shrinking violet and he believes his background enables him to offer a different type of insight.

“I think Brendan wants me to challenge and say what I think about doing things,” he added.

“This is what the stats say, this is what the video evidence says, this is what the training footage we review says about this player.

“It’s not to say ‘do this or do that’, but comment on how I think we can maximise the resources and the talent that we have got.

“I think that’s easy but you still have to be careful how you do it. You have to show respect.

“I wouldn’t like it if someone came into my club and suddenly went ‘you should be doing this or that’. It’s pointless doing it that way.

“I’ve gone around most of the staff and asked them what they want the team to be. What do they want? I’ll tell you in about a month’s time.

“When I walked in, I had a completely fresh view of things. I’d never worked at this level before. I had a pre-conception of what it was like in the Premier League but it’s completely different.

“In the Premier League bubble, it’s almost like the outside world doesn’t exist. Inside it, it’s awash with money and there are a lot of things you can do which you can’t do elsewhere.

“You attract arguably not some of the best characters, but some of the best players in the world. It’s about managing that.

“They are all talented individuals, if they weren’t they wouldn’t be here. The danger is that they will always do what they have always done. Why would they change? They are talented in this bubble which means they get paid an awful lot of money.

“When you want players to think about what they do and to look at things a bit differently, they think ‘I’m reasonably successful and get paid a lot of money’, why would I change? I’m trying to get them to look at why they do things.

“In every role I’ve had it’s been about putting processes in place. It’s the same thing wherever you go in football. Everyone wants success but you have to put the processes in place.”