New Blackpool signing Matt Pennington inspired by Everton legends Leighton Baines and Seamus Coleman and Manchester City's John Stones

The 28-year-old trained and played alongside Goodison Park greats such as Leighton Baines, Seamus Coleman and Phil Jagielka as well as the likes of John Stones, Ashley Williams and Lucas Digne during his time with the Toffees.

The defender, who signed for the Seasiders just over a week ago, would observe his fellow professionals at close quarters during training sessions at Finch Farm in order to aid his own development.

Pennington, who made seven appearances in the Premier League, can see why his aforementioned team-mates have enjoyed such fruitful careers, and he's hoping their examples will help him prevail with the Tangerines.

"It was more about seeing how they operated around the club, how professional they are in their job and in their craft, which is probably the main thing you take from it," said the centre back.

"It becomes the norm, seeing that as something they do, and I've been at other clubs in different leagues and noticed that not every player does all of those things."

He added: "You can see why these lads end up playing at the top level and it reiterates why you should be adding all those small percentages to get the most out of your ability to play as high as you can. They've got good ability, they're good guys, they're all really great people.

"When you see the boys at that level, and you realise that they're normal lads like yourself who have just worked hard at their craft, you think 'why not?' I want to go again and reach the next level. It's nice to have been able to see it and I'd like to take another step towards that in the next couple of years."

The ex-Coventry City, Leeds United and Ipswich Town loanee, who moved to Bloomfield Road after two seasons at Shrewsbury Town, earned his stripes while playing under a collection of elite coaches in Merseyside.

The defender was educated by Roberto Martinez, Sam Allardyce and Marco Silva, to name but a few, and he says that operating for an array of personalities and tacticians has allowed him to be adaptable throughout his career.

He said: "I've had to be adaptable to different styles. It's been interesting to see how different people work, what they emphasise in their training, and what's important to them.

"There's no 'right' style, it's just the way people see the game of football and how they can win games with the squad at their disposal. It's been good to be able to see that and I'm sure it has helped me in terms of becoming adaptable at different clubs I've been at in order to produce on the pitch."