Todd Cantwell believes Blackburn Rovers fans are yet to see the best of him but is loving life at his new club.
Rovers have been cautious with their summer signing, who joined on transfer deadline day. Cantwell didn't have a pre-season with Rangers and so John Eustace has been slowly building him up.
He has been drip-fed into the team but his quality has been evident. In the last three games, he has made a telling impact, producing a match-winning second half against Queens Park Rangers. He then started at Coventry and made a telling impact from the bench at Plymouth Argyle.
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With 60 minutes in an Under-21s game thrown in too, Cantwell is surely not far away from getting a string of starts after the international break. Whilst nobody is ever guaranteed a shirt, the former Norwich City man has shown glimpses of his qualities which merit a starting berth.
Cantwell is excited to be able to show his best to the Rovers fans and thanked them for his welcome. He's settling in well in Blackburn and enjoying his football.
"When I came in, I made it clear in my first interview that I wanted to come in and enjoy my football," Cantwell told RoversTV.
"The changing room, the staff, the team are great. It's set up for a very good season and I'm very happy to be here.
"It's very important to feel loved. Whenever you have the backing from a fan base, it gives you another level of confidence. For a player like me and others in the changing room, you need that to bring out the best version of yourself.
"The saying amongst footballers is that you need three or four starts to be at your best match fitness. When you come into a season that has started, I don't know if you get that luxury.
"I'm always capable of turning that on, with a great changing room and group to facilitate that. I thrive and need that so I'm excited with how things are building.
"Connections in football are something that are really important. The more you play with players, the more you get that understanding.
"I've been in the building for a month now and so I've felt that growing in training. I feel like the boys know what my qualities are, how I can help the team and I'm learning theirs as well.
"It's important for me to take any minutes I can at the moment. I feel good physically and ready to play so I'm pleased that I'm stepping up the minutes."
Whilst Rovers ended the last block of fixtures with back-to-back defeats, it has been a positive start for the team in the Championship.
Despite losing at Plymouth, the strength and impact of the Rovers bench was on display. Cantwell and Amario Cozier-Duberry made an impact, as did Joe Rankin-Costello, who scored.
No team in the Championship has scored more than Rovers' six from the bench this season. That is vital for any team wanting success, Cantwell says.
"We have a very good squad which every team that achieves anything in football, they need that," he explained.
"You get injuries, rotation and some games and opposition suit different players better. It's important and we have a very good squad of players so whoever is starting or on the bench are ready to contribute.
"If you want to achieve anything in football, your home form has to be at its best as well and so far, it's been great, it can't get better.
"We'd always like to score more but that's being selfish. I think there's a lot for the fans to be excited about, the way we've started. It's important not to look too far ahead and they come quickly."
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