forbes.com

Jack Clarke Believes He Has Earned Second Chance In The Premier League

Ipswich Town FC v Aston Villa FC - Premier League

IPSWICH, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 29: Jack Clarke of Ipswich Town rues a missed chance during the Premier

After three years at Tottenham Hotspur where he failed to make a Premier League appearance, Jack Clarke believes he has now earned a chance to play there with Ipswich Town.

Clarke was signed by the newly-promoted side in August for a fee reported to be $19 million plus add ons. He had impressed his new employers with 15 goals in 40 EFL Championship games for Sunderland last season, including one at Portman Road against Ipswich Town in January.

So far this season, Clarke has had to fight for a place in the team. In his first start against Aston Villa, he impressed with an assist for Liam Delap but after two more games he was replaced by Sammie Szmodics and is now trying to make an impact as a substitute for the Suffolk side.

Nonetheless, Clarke said "I've enjoyed every minute of it so far. Obviously, like every player you want to be impacting as much as you can, playing as much football as you can. I feel like we are on the right trajectory in terms of the fact that some of the performances have been really good and mirror what he (head coach Kieran McKenna) described it would be like over the summer and stuff like that."

Sunderland's top scorer last season, Clarke has so far failed to hit the back of the net for Ipswich Town as the club continue their search for a first home win of the season tonight against Crystal Palace. After signing late in the transfer window, Clarke is behind some of new team-mates integrating into the squad having missed the entirety of their pre-season bonding.

Read More: Lily Yohannes Prepares To Face Dutch Nation She Turned Down With USWNT

The 24-year-old Yorkshireman believes a first Premier League goal will lift a proverbial weight off his shoulders. "I'm hoping it comes sooner rather than later. Once you see the first one go in, it sort of just changes your mindset in terms of (you feel) maybe you don't have to do as much to actually score at this level."

As an 18-year-old, Clarke was signed by Maurico Pochettino for Spurs, a club that had just reached the UEFA Champions League final, for a fee in excess of $12 million. After four months, Pochettino had been sacked and over the next two seasons, four new head coaches would take charge of a player they had not signed as he was sent out on loan three times.

Tottenham Hotspur U23 v Blackburn Rovers U23 - Premier League 2

LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 17: Jack Clarke of Tottenham Hotspur celebrates after he scores his sides

Taking time to consider his answer, Clarke honestly admits he might not have been ready for the move. "I went to Tottenham when I was very young so it was a different sort of transfer. They obviously hoped it would materialize into something down the line, for whatever reason, it didn't flourish into anything. I don't really see it as a second chance or a second roll of the dice because I didn't do as much as what I did this time to get here."

"I was just young, and sort of playing and they took a chance on me in terms of what I could be in the future. Where as over the last couple of seasons at Sunderland, I've sort of earned the opportunity to be here. So it just feels a little bit different."

Ipswich Town v Sunderland - Sky Bet Championship

IPSWICH, ENGLAND - JANUARY 13: Jack Clarke of Sunderland opens the scoring during the Sky Bet

Clarke played in the opening two games of this season for Sunderland before the chance of joining another Premier League proved impossible to turn down. Looking back on his time in the north-east, Clarke only has fond memories. "I obviously enjoyed my time there and loved every minute of playing for that team and representing that club. I feel like I did play some of my best football of my career so far in them past two seasons."

As a teenager, Clarke attended Archbishop Holgate's School in York, the same school from which the future England international Ben Godfrey graduated from. I asked Clarke if he was aware of Godfrey growing up in the cathedral city in which they were both born. "Ben was a couple of years above me at school," he tells me, "so we never really crossed paths."

Forbes Daily: Join over 1 million Forbes Daily subscribers and get our best stories, exclusive reporting and essential analysis of the day’s news in your inbox every weekday.

By signing up, you agree to receive this newsletter, other updates about Forbes and its affiliates’ offerings, our Terms of Service (including resolving disputes on an individual basis via arbitration), and you acknowledge our Privacy Statement. Forbes is protected by reCAPTCHA, and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

"We probably played football together outside of school a few times and whatever else because we were from the same area. In terms of football pathways, we obviously went down different routes. I think he came on trial when we was younger at Leeds and obviously that didn't come to anything for him but he's a top, top player and he's done really well for himself."

Brentford v Leeds United - Sky Bet Championship

BRENTFORD, ENGLAND - APRIL 22: Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa gives Jack Clarke encouragement

Unlike Godfrey, Clarke was taken on by the Leeds United academy, graduating to the first team squad during the 2018/19 season, There he came under the tutelage of the renowned Argentinian taskmaster Marcelo Bielsa, which he tells me was a baptism of fire for a 17-year-old.

"My first season in professional football was under Marcelo. For me, I was stepping into it so I thought everybody was like that and that was like the normal thing that happened when you started playing professional football. It was hard not to learn under him, he was so detailed and so particular in everything that he wanted both on and off the pitch."

"You just sort of like had to be a sponge and take in whatever he was saying. To be fair, there wasn't much room for discussion in terms of what he wanted from his wingers and stuff like that. It was sort of run as much as possible the rest of it should take care of itself."

Now having joined Ipswich he has been reunited with two of his former Leeds United team-mates in Kalvin Phillips and Leif Davis. Clarke said "it makes it feel a little bit more homely when you know a couple of people, especially when you're moving to the other end of the country. It helps a little bit yeah."

At Ipswich he has taken possession of the number 47 shirt which he last wore at Leeds but there is no superstition behind it. "It was my first number when I came through at Leeds, I wore 20 for the past few seasons when I was at Sunderland but, because I came in late, it was already gone (the shirt worn by Omari Hutchinson). They're weren't many options left so I sort of took what was left."