City completed their third signing of the summer on Wednesday, as defender Callum Johnson arrived at the University of Bradford Stadium.
We spoke with him shortly after he put pen to paper to find out what attracted him to the club.
Q: Callum, welcome to Bradford City. How does it feel to be here?
C: I am delighted. It has happened quickly. Last week I came and spoke to the manager and I knew straight away that I wanted to sign. It has been done early, so now I am ready to go.
Q: How much does that help? We are at the end of May and you have your future settled at this early stage of the off-season, and getting ready to go knowing where you are going to be - that must help?
C: Yeah, definitely mentally, just being able to focus now knowing where I am going to be and preparing for pre-season and the season to come is a nice feeling. I can focus on the programme I am on, so it is a good thing to get sorted.
Q: You mentioned you have already had a chat with the manager. How did that go and what drew you to Bradford City, making you want to come and sign here?
C: The chat with the manager was really good. I came in last week to speak to the gaffer and David Sharpe who I know from Mansfield, and the size of the club is really what brought me in. I have played for big clubs before and been successful. I have been promoted from League Two twice and am aiming to add a third, now. The manager said everything I wanted to hear and told me the way he wants to play. I know a few of the lads - I know Brad Halliday well and I know Alex Pattison and a few others, and they only say good things.
Q: You mentioned the two promotions that you have - one near the start of you career and one last season with Mansfield going up automatically. Having that recent experience and knowing what it takes to get out of this division must be a big benefit to you?
C: Yeah, of course. The first one was in my first season in football with Accrington Stanley and that was an amazing season which no one expected, and last season was obviously great getting promoted again. You can see similarities with both teams with the mix of experience and youth. I spoke with David Sharpe and Stephen Gent and they picked up on the same things. It will help later on in the season if you are in the run-in having players with the mindset that you have done it before.
Q: Tell us a little bit about your career in general - what is it that has brought you to this stage?
C: After Accrington, I moved to Portsmouth and I loved it there, and we were unlucky to just miss out on promotion. I moved to Ross County in the Scottish Premiership which was good, but just a little far from home. I ended up moving to Mansfield and I loved my time there. Unfortunately, I had one or two injuries which was unexpected because, in the rest of my career, I have been fine with injuries and playing a lot of games. I played my part in going up last season, but it was not to be. Now I am here and I am really looking forward to it.
Q: We know you are a right-back and you have played in multiple positions in the defence throughout your career. Can you describe what sort of player you are?
C: I have predominantly played right-back in a back four and, in a back three, I can play at right centre-back as well as right wing-back. I had a good chat to the manager about where he sees me and where I feel most comfortable, and we have the same ideas on where I play my best football, but I am versatile.
Q: Do you have set goals following that talk with the manager and knowing more about the role you will play in the team?
C: Yeah, keeping clean sheets is the main one, and I do like to get assists and get up the pitch as well, but that of course is dependent on where I am playing. I do like to also just focus on the match to ensure we get all three points.
Q: Just under a month now until you are back in pre-season, training and meeting your new teammates. How much are you looking forward to that now?
A: Yeah, absolutely looking forward to it. It is always exciting - especially at a big club - to get started. I have heard it will be a good and hard pre-season, so I am looking forward to that.
Q: Final message to the supporters - how are you feeling ahead of getting out and playing in front of them?
A: They are important for getting behind us and hopefully, with a good start, we will be able to keep it going. We will strive to reach our goals.
To watch Callum Johnson's first interview as a Bantam now, head over to our official iFollow channel by CLICKING HERE.
