It has been a meteoric rise from minding phone boxes for loose change in his native Ivory Coast to establishing himself as the defensive bedrock of a Manchester United side with serious designs on the Premier League title but Eric Bailly cannot understand the fuss when asked to reflect on a life less ordinary.

Bailly had not long entered his teenage years when he ended his studies to become the manager of a telephone box in Abidjan, the economic capital of Ivory Coast. Each day, he would empty out the change, earning a pittance in the process, before going for trials with other hopefuls as he pursued his dream of becoming a professional footballer.

“In Africa, there are people that live in much more difficult situations but, yes, as a child I started working,” Bailly recalled.

“I’ve had luck with my father’s help but I also had to work. I had a program after training in the afternoon in which I would go in front of my house to do various things and the phone boxes was something I did to earn some money and to resolve some of my issues. I cannot always rely on my parents. They’ve always tried to help me, but I had to do something to be able to get what I wanted.”