New England Under-21 skipper Morgan Gibbs-White is relishing the spotlight after his mega-money move to Nottingham Forest.
The midfielder made a summer switch from Wolves to the City Ground in a deal which could rise to £42.5million.
He was part of Forest’s record-breaking 21-player signing spree ahead of their return to the Premier League.
But 23-year-old, preparing to face France in Leicester with England Under-21s on Saturday, is loving being in the limelight with a big price tag.
“I enjoyed it. It meant more eyes were on me, I could show myself more. It wasn’t a pressure thing,” he said.
“The focus was on the price tag and I had to prove people wrong in a sense. You thrive off that situation. You want to prove people wrong and impress.
“It was a tough period for me. It was either stay at the club I’d been at since I was a kid, which was all I ever knew, or take a big jump and try to achieve something else.
“For me I felt it was the right time to move on. Luckily enough it’s all gone well so far but there is more to give.”
Gibbs-White will captain Lee Carsley’s Young Lions for the first time against France and against Croatia at Craven Cottage on Tuesday.
“It was a surprise. It’ll be the first time I’ve captained an England side. It’s an honour to receive a call-up and when he told me that I was captain it was a really special feeling,” he said.
“It shows I’ve been doing well at club level and he sees me as a leader in the group. I think I’m the oldest one here so that is why.”
Meanwhile, Max Aarons will hold talks with Norwich about his future at the end of the season.
The 23-year-old right-back, who is preparing for his final Under-21 tournament this summer, has one year left on his contract at Carrow Road and promotion back to the Premier League is not guaranteed with the Canaries seventh in the Championship.
“Being promoted twice, playing in the Premier League, you could say that (that he has achieved everything at Norwich),” he said.
“I am genuinely looking at the next six-eight weeks and what we can achieve. There’s an expectation to be promoted straight away, if we can do that that’s what I’m focused on.
“After that we’ll sit down and speak, as we do every year. There are a lot of different scenarios, whether we’re promoted or not, that will ultimately effect what happens in the future.”
