Tony Pulis joined Off The Ball to discuss his life in football and spoke of the respect he has for Glenn Whelan, and how he earned it, via a story about Brek Shea.

Pulis managed Whelan at Stoke City from 2008 to 2013 and spoke of the resilience the Dubliner showed when others were signed with an eye to replacing him in midfield.

"That is why I have got the greatest of respect for Glenn. Every challenge you put in front of him, he would step up again. We brought some good midfielders in and through pre-season Glenn would just step up.

"Irrespective of what I paid for that midfield player, I would always pick the best players for the team and Glenn would always prove to be the best player for that position.

"As an individual, he can be a bit spiky at times with his teammates and others but as a person and as a manager, I have the greatest respect for him. He is not a great favourite with the supporters but his teammates loved to play with Glenn because he did all the donkey work.

"He was tidy enough on the ball and a very intelligent player as well."

Tony Pulis on Glenn Whelan

Pulis told us of an incident with a new signing that indicated the standards that Whelan set for the new arrivals.

"It was Brek Shea, he played for America, he had long, flowing blonde hair. You looked at him first and thought he was a bit of a 'Charlie', but he was a nice lad.

"Glenn hits this cross-field pass that went out of play, and Brek puts his hand up. We were doing 11 v 11 and I was coaching something, I turned around and by the time I turned back... let's just say that Glenn had shaken him up a bit!

"Brek never, ever got involved in any of that nonsense from any point after that."

Pulis reiterates how this attitude contributed to a feeling around Stoke - club and city - that this was an uncompromising, tough place.

"That was the club. I was brought up in a very family-oriented community, where everybody was the same level as everyone else. I've always tried to build football clubs like that.

"If you spend enough time there, the team I had at [Gillingham, his former club] was fantastic. Wonderful players who worked so hard for one another and gave everything for one another.

"At Stoke, over that period of time, everybody was side-by-side."

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