Tottenham fullback Kyle Walker says his first loan experience at Northampton Town was the reality check he needed.
Walker made the move to the Cobblers while coming through at hometown club Sheffield United.
"I was told I'd be joining Northampton on loan but I'd never driven on the motorway before, so I had to follow my mum and dad down the M1," he told the London Evening Standard. "My dad was petrified of me driving on the motorway and thought I was going to kill myself or something.
"On my first day, we had two training sessions. In the first, we all wore the standard Northampton training kit but in the second, we just wore T-shirts with the 'Kick It Out' logo on the front, and ordinary pairs of shorts and socks. There was no Northampton badge or anything because they didn't have a spare set of training kit. It was a reality check for me but a very good one.
"There were players there whose mortgages were on the line and winning football matches made it easier for them to look after their families. You could tell how passionate some of the senior players were by what they did to hang on to the result if we were winning, chucking themselves in front of everything to stop the ball going in.
"You have to remember that professional football is a job, too, and some people have to get results on the pitch to pay to live. If you're lucky enough to get into a Premier League or Championship team straight away, well done to you, but I feel really grateful for the experience that I had at the lower end."