Daniel Ballard has stepped up and beefed up to become a colossus for Sunderland.
And it’s all driven by a surprising inner belief that he isn’t quite good enough at what he does.
Which is surprising to anyone who has seen this immense defender blocking out the light in front of his goal, or powering forwards to score as a standout player in the standout Premier League team this season.
Ballard scored against Arsenal in his most recent game and comfortably carried the weight of expectation along with several team-mates on his shoulders.
No way in the world was he not going to celebrate knocking one in against his old club - a refreshing exception to the modern rule.
Ballard is a folk hero on Wearside and a symbol of the spirit within a club enjoying good times again following promotion back to the Premier League.
He told GiveMeSport: “I was never, as a young man, the most talented player and had to work quite hard to fight for my opportunities.
“And even playing now, I sort of carry that around with me. I have to work hard to fight for everything. But after all the tough bits, I think fans appreciate that, especially in the Premier League.
“It’s perhaps a British style of play - tough and doing the simple things really well. And always fighting for the club you’re playing at.
“You might stop progressing. So it's just about going into every game, and feeling that nervousness and trying to keep proving to everyone that you know you're good enough, you're at the level, and you can help teams.
Arsenal past
Emirates Stadium (Arsenal FC)
“I love Arsenal for everything they've done for me, but I suppose I never really had that real connection with the first team.
“It was more sort of the academy and, you know, all the staff and the amazing people that helped me. I never got that real chance in the first team. So I was never not going to celebrate in a stadium like that in such a big game. I was always going to celebrate.
“I'll just always give 100% and I think fans appreciate that.”
Ballard is a significant figure for Sunderland in many ways, not just for his size. He was the scorer of the play-off semi-final goal that sent his team to Wembley and ultimate victory over Sheffield United to restore Sunderland’s place in the top flight after eight years.
But having been sent to the most testing recesses of the league with loans at Blackpool and Millwall, he was already thinking ahead to how he would cope as a Premier League player with its extra demands.
Hitting the gym
Sunderland's Jobe Bellingham lifts the trophy as he celebrates with teammates after winning the championship play-off final
He said: “Last year was a real stop-start season for me. I felt really good the season before, and I was looking to kick on last year but I was a bit hampered. My season was very stop and start.
“I kind of saved the season by getting back fit for the play-offs just in time, and then I did a lot of work this summer.
“I've been in the gym a lot, put a little bit more size on this year, because of the physicality of the Premier League
“It helps to feel powerful, feel strong. I put maybe half a kilo on, maybe even more in the end. I seem to be playing well with it. So it's got to try and maintain that, keep going.
“All my learning experiences helped me, helped me grow as a player. I had a great year at Blackpool. We got promoted there, and then going to Millwall was special in its own way. And that was the first year playing in front of fans after COVID and thankfully, I've done really well.
“I managed to sort of get the support of the fans quite early on, and feel like we had a great, great connection while I was there. I really felt the support from them. They helped me in that first year in the Championship.”
Loans at grounds like The Den breed humility. It didn’t do England captain Harry Kane any harm.
Sunderland travel to Fulham this weekend nestled in the top four which is beyond any wildest dream but Ballard will stay grounded.
Born in Stevenage, raised as a Chelsea fan and a dad of two at only 26, he has plenty to keep him occupied. Injury issues from last season have disappeared in a puff of positivity.
He said: “We've had a fantastic start as a team. Going up through the play-offs, there's no better feeling, and it really brings a squad together. We've added a lot of new players this summer, and things are going really well.
“There's always that bit of doubt of you being involved but I’ve managed to get quite a bit of game time in the Premier League this year, so we're extremely confident.
“There's a lot of lads that deserve the opportunity to play in the Premier League, but haven't quite got that chance yet. So there's a really exciting group.”