Snodgrass: ‘If fans just see you flying high all the time… it’s not the truth’

Robert Snodgrass is a busy man just like he’s a busy footballer. He can be as hard to pin down as one of his set-piece deliveries.

“You crack on,” Snodgrass tells The Athletic, while in his car between appointments.

The Premier League is back after 14 weeks of quiet — 10 of which the West Ham midfielder has spent podcasting alongside former Rangers striker and Scotland team-mate Kris Boyd.

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Part of the reason for creating The Lockdown Tactics was to keep himself occupied and learn new skills. Part of it was to raise awareness that elite sports stars are not immune to the same mental health issues as everyone else.

World heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, Scotland rugby head coach Gregor Townsend and golfer Andrew “Beef” Johnson, as well as football names in Jack Wilshere, Danny Rose and Scottish referee Willie Collum, have appeared since April’s launch. It now has more than 13,000 subscribers on YouTube.

Boyd’s younger brother, Scott, committed suicide in 2016. The 36-year-old has now pledged to run a half-marathon from Ayr United to Kilmarnock on June 27, raising money for his own charity aimed to help those struggling with their mental health.

Proceeds will also go to the Darby Rimmer Motor Neurone Disease Foundation, following the death of his former Rangers team-mate Fernando Ricksen in September.

It has all got Snodgrass thinking.

“There is the underlying issue where Kris lost his brother through mental health issues, so he wanted to just get inside the heads of the general public and sport stars, to try to see if we can stop other people’s families going through what our families have gone through. That’s a special thing,” Snodgrass tells The Athletic.

“The stuff with people’s childhood, it’s so true. I do believe it’s a big factor in what defines you and what then happens. And everyone’s childhood is different.”

Snodgrass acknowledges his was tough. Brought up in Glasgow’s Gallowgate neighbourhood, you can name a street crime and he most likely saw it. There was community to embrace and gangs to avoid. There is undeniable pride in his roots. He will never lose that. There was also the self-awareness that the success of his career relied on moving away.

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“There was one incident where we didn’t have the money to go and play football at a surface or facility, anything like that. So I was always having to jump the fence,” says Snodgrass. “I came through a very deprived area. A very rough upbringing. There was a lot of crime involved but also some fantastic people.

“Glasgow is really friendly. It’s got the stats of being really aggressive and having a high crime rate but the people make the city. It’s one of the most friendly places I’ve ever been to. All my family, all my best mates and all my friends would tell you back home, it’s amazing. I love being back home.

“There’s just a lot of things that happen where people become famous or get on a platform, and it’s never really been that sort of area, even though there have been some great names that have come out of there. For the actual streets and the east end of Glasgow, it’s very tough.

“I had to move. I had to move. It was just getting to that stage of my career where I felt, in Scotland terms, I had to move to one of the big teams and it would have only been Celtic. At that time, I just felt I had to learn how to stand on my own two feet.”

His family could offer Snodgrass little financial support for his obvious natural talent as a teenager. Celtic were desperate to entice him. His time at boys’ club Rangers South saw Snodgrass play in a full Rangers kit – with a full Celtic kit underneath.

Turning down Celtic was as tough as any decision Snodgrass has made. Instead, he became a Livingston player, hoping for a quicker route into senior football.

Those who know him well see the same Robert Snodgrass now as the one who grew up in Glasgow. His personality is led by his humour. He is hard to pin down because he is generous with his time. Giving his friends and family more financial opportunities thanks to his football career has been a far greater driver than his personal rewards.

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But it doesn’t take long in Snodgrass’ company to absorb some of the intensity that motivates him on the pitch. He had to learn his discipline and professionalism: what to eat, what time he should sleep, which fluids to drink and what training to do in the gym.

With each passing season, it has improved. When a new strength, conditioning or sports science brain has presented itself, Snodgrass has tapped them up.

“I was this teenager trying to find my way and Craig Flannigan worked with us at Livingston. As soon as I got involved with his sports science and strength coaching, I was hooked. I really knuckled down,” says Snodgrass.

“Before that, I hadn’t the right guidance, the right structure in place. My family, my brothers, they didn’t know what it took to be a top-level athlete or whatever it was. And to be honest with you, I don’t think, at the time, the coaches at Livingston… they were just trying to get me to really work hard. But even in a structure like that, we didn’t have a gym. It was a pull-up bar and that was it. The state-of-the-art stuff now is something you look at and think, ‘Phwoah, how far behind were we?’.

“I didn’t have the right people either, that knew how to be a top pro. That’s nothing bad against anybody. It’s just that I was born on the streets of Glasgow and playing football was just fun for me. When you actually go through the doors, they teach you about discipline and try to get you there.

“When I went down to Leeds, Norwich, Hull, Aston Villa, West Ham — they really do have the structures there to get the young kids built-up early. They have the sports psychologists in to speak to them. It’s a lot of the stuff I try to speak about because the biggest thing for a young kid is to get the right people round about them and focus on what will keep them grounded, and focused on being the best player they can be.

“It’s not easy. Young kids get side-tracked. They may have agents in their heads and managers who are trying to get the best out of them but don’t have the relationship.

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“This is me as a coach or when I go into management: you need to put your arm round every single one of your players and it’s then about what gets the best out of that player. Is it tough love? Being there for them when they need you? Trust? It could be loads of things. Or do they need to be pushed to make them see they’ve got more in the locker? That they can push everyone of those players to the limit.

“That’s another thing with young kids. How far can you push them? But when the media then gets on their back when they’re having a hard time, make sure you’re there to pick up the pieces so they know you’re the one that pushed them there, and you will be the one that’s going to pick them back up and take them even further.

“You need to make mistakes in your life to learn — that’s the most important thing for me.”

The key person in Snodgrass’ career was Lee Matthews. The former Bristol City, Port Vale and Leeds forward ended his career as Snodgrass’ team-mate at Livingston. He has represented him since and was the best man at Snodgrass’ wedding last summer.

“That was the best thing that happened in my career,” says Snodgrass. “He was a massive help. He knew I had a young family. I had my first daughter very early, at 19, and he knew that was happening, so he just put an arm around me and really got me to knuckle down that season before I moved to Leeds.”

Snodgrass scored 10 goals in Livingston’s 2007-08 Scottish second-tier campaign and registered more than that in assists. His team-mate Graham Dorrans joined West Bromwich Albion and Snodgrass was picked up by Leeds.

“Gary McAllister signed me and was sacked after three months,” recalls Snodgrass. Four years later, he had joined Norwich after Leeds could not get him to agree to sign a new deal. Neil Warnock wanted to build his Leeds team around him. Snodgrass did not want to be the last man standing.

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“Leeds were desperate to keep me. I just think it was down to the takeover. Investment-wise, we were selling a lot of our good players. It almost felt like, ‘Is this a time where am I going to be left behind?’.

“I wanted to play in the Premier League and I didn’t think we were getting there. It worked out that Leeds may not get there until this season and I’m seven, eight years down my career. The football they’ve played over the last two seasons has been incredible. I hope they do that now.

“But for me, it was all about timing. We lost a lot of our good players: Jonny Howson, Bradley Johnson, Jermaine Beckford, Max Gradel. Right then I felt as if the chances were going backwards for us to get promoted.

“It was a hard decision. I loved everybody there, I loved the club, I was captain at the time. But it was a decision I felt I needed to make. You need to make sacrifices. Leeds have made many big decisions themselves and you only get one chance at it. For me, it was a chance I had to take.

“I’ve been in almost the same situation three times: Leeds, Hull and Norwich. Those decisions to leave have been really difficult, where you take the negatives that come with the positives. There was a lot of criticism aimed towards me every time I did it and that was a good thing, because the clubs never wanted me to leave. I knew I was doing my job then.”

Snodgrass’ first season at Norwich and in the Premier League was an education from captain Russell Martin, who is now managing League One side MK Dons.

“I felt I was a good pro coming from Leeds — I realised what it took to be at elite level. Russ showed me the way. He never did it to impress anybody. It was just this structure of how he conducted himself, how good a team-mate, person, athlete he was. Every single thing about him oozed class for me,” Snodgrass tells The Athletic. “He’s got the same mannerisms as someone like Brendan Rodgers. He’s a very classy guy. Gracious in defeat. He would stay behind after training and then I would I think, ‘Well, if he’s going to stay at the training ground until 3pm, then I’m going to stay until 4pm’. That created a good culture with the lads at Norwich.”

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The second season of Snodgrass’ two with Norwich was much harder: his departure following Premier League relegation in 2014. In a goalless draw at Carrow Road with Newcastle in January, Snodgrass responded to comments from home supporters by yelling at them to “fuck off”. By the final whistle, Snodgrass was gesturing his apologies to the same supporters, who sung his name in return.

He made a point of speaking to the press immediately after the game and ahead of the weekend to make sure the air was cleared.

“When I went to the Premier League, I felt I really kicked on. I wanted to be up there competing with the likes of Grant Holt to be the top goalscorer (Snodgrass finished the 2012-13 Premier League season two goals behind). The next season, I did it (joint-top with Gary Hooper on six goals) and I was voted player of the year, so I always wanted to keep pushing myself. Always,” says Snodgrass.

“I played under a lot of pressure the second season. It was a difficult few months. I had a bad knee injury, like a hole behind my knee, which actually led to my dislocated kneecap at Hull.”

Snodgrass was sidelined for 15 months after his Premier League debut for Hull, following a £7 million move from Norwich.

“I played through a lot of pain, which a lot of Norwich fans don’t know. I fell out with them, came out straight away and apologised.I took it on the chin. They knew I also gave everything. It was one of those where me and my family really could’ve settled there but again, it was no different from when I was at Leeds. I wanted to be back in the Premier League.

“I do feel I’ve had some great relationships. I’ve scored more than 100 goals in my career, from midfield. That’s a good stat! Any midfielders that have scored more than 100 goals have done their job. That’s a good return. I’ve got over 100 assists as well.

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“That’s one thing I always wanted to do. Look at people and my league and think, ‘How can I score as many as them or more? All those in my position. How many assists can I get?’ Always being judged on goals and assists — that is it. But I’ve also tried to work as hard as I possibly can into the bargain, so to not be that luxury player.

“They don’t feel sorry for you in the football world. You’ll be put aside if you’re not rattling the numbers out. And listen, I’ve managed to do that. I’ve achieved good numbers.

“The hardest part for me was losing 15 months of my career. It was so frustrating. But these things happen, so you have to come back stronger, and I managed to do that.”

That Snodgrass returned to impressive form the other side of his injury — enough to earn his £10 million-plus move back to the top flight with West Ham — is a major source of pride. His start to life in London was difficult. It took spending the 2017-18 season on loan at Aston Villa in the second tier to really get his West Ham career going.

This season Snodgrass’ set-piece delivery deserves high praise. Only Newcastle’s Matt Ritchie and Brighton midfielder Pascal Gross have created more chances from set plays per 90 minutes in the Premier League this season (1.49).

Premier League set play chance creaters

“The biggest thing is if your team-mates want you to try to be on the free kicks and everywhere I’ve been, I have always been on set pieces. I take great pride in it: hitting areas, hitting targets,” says Snodgrass.

At the same time, health issues with his family back in Glasgow have played out in the background. Those closest to Snodgrass have admired how he has handled the situation, as well as retained his focus on football.

“I travelled two and half hours to Birmingham — the same back home — every day, to go and conduct myself at a massive club like Aston Villa and I did it. I didn’t moan or complain. I gave it my all for them.

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“Every team where I’ve been, it might not have always been good enough but as long as I can look myself in the mirror and say I’ve given everything I possibly could… and sometimes, your body let’s you know that you’re travelling five hours per day and your back is in agony; your hamstrings and calves.

“The Championship season is really gruelling but I had a special connection with Villa and at one point, that relationship between club and player, I’ve always had everywhere I’ve been.

“At West Ham, it didn’t start off like that but I’ve got that relationship now. They know exactly what I can do and if I was a manager I would want a player like that, who was willing to give everything and put his body on the line.

“On many occasions, I played through pain, took injections and would do everything I possibly could to try to be the best team-mate. For me, it’s no different but I’ll do exactly the same. Anything to give my all. That’s all everybody asks — no matter if it’s in business terms or going to work every day.

“If you’re not doing it, then you’re probably not enjoying your workplace. I love football. I love every second of it.”

The Lockdown Podcast is benefitting from the same mindset.

“The biggest thing is not to hide behind an ego,” adds Snodgrass. “You’re more of a hero in my eyes if you want to tell the real story. Then it will affect and help other people along the way because these fans — whether it’s golf, rugby, boxing or football — they’re watching your every move. If they just see you flying high all the time… I would love for it to be for everyone but that’s just not the truth. Everyone has their daily struggles.

“We’re always saying it’s OK not to be OK and that’s the truth. We’ve almost created this different world now of social media. Everybody thinks it’s going amazingly for people and that’s not the case. We’ve found that on many occasions.”

(Photo by Arfa Griffiths/West Ham United FC via Getty Images)