Preston fans have a new hero in Bambo Diaby – and the defender has now opened up on his own hero, the former Barcelona defender Carles Puyol.
Diaby’s performances for Preston are becoming quite the story.
The Senegalese defender picked up a two-year ban whilst at Barnsley having been found guilty of breaching doping rules.
Preston handed Diaby a trial earlier this season, and having impressed Ryan Lowe, he was given a contract until the summer.
Diaby excelled in his first league start against Bournemouth earlier this month before putting in a man of the match display against Cardiff City last weekend.
Fans have taken to Diaby very quickly, with a belief that the centre back will become something of a cult hero at North End.
With that in mind, Preston have published an in-depth interview with Diaby, speaking to Simon Crabtree.
Crabtree asked Diaby who his hero growing up – and the Preston star admitted that Carles Puyol was his main inspiration growing up.
Diaby was born in Senegal but moved to Catalunya at the age of just four.
After turning out for Cerdanyola, Vilassar Mar, Premia, Badalona and Cornella in Catalunya, Diaby left for Italy in 2016.
That means Diaby was around the Barcelona area for some of Barca’s best days, seeing the likes of Puyol, Xavi and Andres Iniesta – as well as Lionel Messi of course – in their pomp.
Diaby admitted that Puyol’s character and attitude made him say ‘wow’ and ultimately made him want to be just like Puyol.
“I was watching Barcelona play because I was living there, so Carles Puyol,” said Diaby. “He was the captain, so that is my first example. When I started to play football, because I like his character, his attitude on the pitch, I was like ‘wow’. They called him ‘Tiburon’, which is shark in English, so this is exciting. You see other players, but in the beginning, I wanted to be like Puyol,” he added.
Diaby may never quite reach the Champions League-winning heights of the former Barcelona captain, but the Preston Puyol has a nice ring to it.