Freddy Eastwood made headline news two years ago when he scored for Southend to knock Manchester United out of the Carling Cup. And he had high hopes of getting into the Premier League when he made a £1.4 million move to Wolves last season. But his transfer to Molineux did not work out and Eastwood was left on the bench most weeks by manager Mick McCarthy. Eastwood felt he had to move to get the amount of football he wanted to play and when Chris Coleman came in with a £1.2 million bid, the Wales striker could not say no and welcomed the chance to reignite his career at the Ricoh Arena. Givemefootball's Ian Clarkson spoke to Eastwood and found the striker staying diplomatic about his season at Wolves and optimistic about playing for the Sky Blues.
Q:HOW DO YOU SEE THE SEASON AHEAD AT COVENTRY?
A:I don’t think there's any great pressure on the manager or myself coming into the club. Whatever we achieve this season we can build on it the season after, I've got a four-year deal and see my own aim, and the manager's, is to get into the Premier League eventually and stay there.
Q:AFTER A DISAPPOINTING SEASON AT WOLVES, IS IT FAIR TO SAY YOU'RE ALL ABOUT BEING A PLAYER WHO JUST WANTS TO PLAY?
A:Of course, wherever I've been, I've wanted to play football. I wasn't going to be happy just sitting on the bench at Wolves for another season, it's just not me. Wherever I've been I just want to play and that includes Wales too. The bench is just not a nice place to be, you want to be on the pitch.
Q:YOU HAVE EVERY CONFIDENCE IN YOUR ABILITY TO SCORE GOALS FOR COVENTRY DON'T YOU?
A:When I play I score goals, I don't score in every game but my record over the years has been one every other game. It proves to me and everyone who's watching that if I'm enjoying my game, I will get goals. The main place I scored goals was Southend; I went three, four, five games without scoring sometimes though. But the manager knew that it was only a matter of time before I laid one on a plate for someone or scored a hat-trick myself. The manager at Coventry knows me from those days; he's been following my progress for three years now. He's put his confidence in me and I've put my confidence in the club by coming here. Hopefully we can work together as a good team.
Q:HOW BIG A PART DID COVERNTRY MANAGER CHRIS COLEMAN PLAY IN ALL THIS?
A:With the club being as big as it is the manager was also one of the reasons I came to Coventry. I know he's a really good manager and I know I'm going to play matches under him. Even if I have a couple of bad games, I think the manager will believe in my ability. This is the sort of stadium I want to play in too, one of the best in this division.
Q:CAN YOU SEE YOURSELF FOLLOWING IN ROBBIE KEANE'S FOOTSTEPS AT ALL; HE ALSO MADE THE JOURNEY FROM WOLVES TO COVENTRY?
A:I know Robbie off the pitch on a personal level; I get on with him okay. I've watched him a few times and played against him for Wales against Ireland. I played against him at Spurs too, I've learned his movement is brilliant and he did well in the short time he was at Coventry too. I'd like to come here with a Number 10 on my back, be one of the main strikers and achieve as much as Robbie has.
Q:NOW THAT ALL THE DISTRACTIONS OF LAST SEASON HAVE DISAPPEARED, IS THAT A BIG WEIGHT OFF YOUR SHOULDERS?
A:That's one of the good things now; I can just crack on with playing football. Last season just wasn't me. I went to Wolves to play football, but I didn't get as many games as I would have wanted. I don't know what happened really, I'm just looking forward to being at Coventry now. I'm here to play football. That's always the main issue with me.
