For a man charged with the on-field responsibility of
masterminding Fulham's bid to reach the Premiership, John Collins is remarkably
relaxed.
Receiving his Nationwide League Player of the Month award
after inspiring his team's flying start to the campaign, Collins is content to
share the plaudits around rather than hogging the praise for himself.
The £2 million close season signing from Everton was
brought to Craven Cottage as the fulcrum around which new manager Jean Tigana
would build a team aimed at not only gaining promotion but also establishing the
club in the top flight.
Collins has slipped into the role comfortably and
confidently, the 32 year old former Celtic and Scotland midfielder having
previously played for Tigana at Monaco and thus knowing exactly what the French
coach would expect from him.
"When Jean rang me and told me about his plan for Fulham,"
said Collins after receiving his Nationwide award, "he said his aim was to make
a small club into a big one.
"He said he wanted to mould the team around me, and after
thinking long and hard about it I decided it was a challenge I wanted to take
up.
"It was Jean who signed me at Monaco and I had two great
years there. I had a very good working relationship with him. He has a terrific
football knowledge, but I've also got a lot of respect for him as a person -
he's a good, honest man.
"I like his football style, it's total football if you
like with everybody taking responsibility. So although the team is playing
around me, the system we play means there are always lots of options.
"We've started the season terrifically well, it couldn't
have gone better. It's not just the results though, it's the way we are
playing and scoring lots of goals.
"The players are working hard during the week as well as
in matches, giving the manager the commitment he expects. That is going to be
very important to us as the season goes on.
"After the start we've made teams are going to try and
stop us playing, but that's something we have to adapt to.
"We've certainly got the quality in the side to do that,
so hopefully we can build on our great start to achieve the aims which everybody
at the club is working towards."