AFC Bournemouth
When asked who his favourite player was growing up, James Hill once replied Virgil van Dijk.
He couldn’t have predicted that his full Premier League debut would come against a Liverpool captained by the Dutch international.
However, he probably would have been even more surprised to learn that his first top-flight start came at left-back.
That’s the thing about Hill – he doesn’t shy away from a challenge.
When he was just 16, Hill became Fleetwood Town’s youngest-ever player, coming on as a substitute against Premier League high-fliers Leicester City.
The Foxes were ruthless in the first-half, scoring through Christian Fuchs, Vicente Iborra and Kelechi Iheanacho, and it became young Hill’s job to stem the flow as he came on in the 61st minute, with only Rachid Ghezzal able to add to the scoresheet.
He recalled: “It was very nerve-wracking, but it was obviously a really exciting moment for myself.
“It was unexpected for me to come on in that game, the gaffer at the time told me I was coming on without any notice.
“I just didn’t really think about what was happening at the time, I thought it’s just another game and I’ve got to try and make an impact, but at the same time, I’ve just got to hold my own because it’s men’s football.
“I think it gave me a bit of a head start in terms of playing in front of big crowds and things like that, I really enjoyed the experience.”
His league debut followed in April 2019, his long-throw leading to a 95th-minute equaliser against Peterborough United.
By the 2020/21 campaign, Hill had established himself as a regular member of the team at Highbury Stadium, playing 35 times in all competitions.
With more than 50 appearances under his belt as a teenager, his good performances earned him the attentions of some of Europe’s biggest clubs, eventually electing to join the Cherries in the height of a promotion push in the Championship. No pressure, then.
Indeed, his debut for the club came in a crucial victory over Barnsley in January 2022, coming on with the Cherries holding a narrow lead but flailing after Gary Cahill’s late sending off.
It was his only appearance during that season, but when speaking at the time, Hill highlighted his strong mentality: “It was all new to me and I had to accept that I might not be involved much.
"Coming from League One, I could see the standard was very high here and the club was pushing for the Premier League.
“Although I didn’t play a part in the games, I felt I played a massive part in training and I have learned so much since I’ve been here.
“I had to make sure I kept ticking over. I played games for the development squad and treated them like Premier League games.”
It’s that desire for progress which has seen him establish himself as a firm favourite around the training ground, with Hill taking a real focus on making the most of the experiences of the players around the squad.
“I think I’ve learned so much from each and every player, to be able to watch players in training as well as in games.
“Whether I was starting games, sitting on the bench or watching from the stands, it was still a great, great learning for me to try to take that next step into breaking into this team and I feel like, even off-the-pitch, I can always ask them questions.
“We’ve got such a strong squad – Marcos [Senesi], Zaba [Illia Zabarnyi], Lloydy [Kelly] and Meps [Chris Mepham] – there’s a real tight-knit group here. When you’re training with these boys every day, you’re developing your own game without realising it.
“If there are questions to be asked, it's a great group as I can go and ask them questions. They'll stay out with you and obviously they want to learn as well so I think we all benefit from being around each other.”
Hill enjoyed loan spells with Heart of Midlothian in the Scottish Premiership and Blackburn Rovers in the Sky Bet Championship, establishing himself as a regular starter.
At both clubs, he had to play a significant amount of football at right-back, which wasn’t something he’d done regularly in his professional career to date.
He explained: “It’s obviously something that has enhanced me as a player and as a defender.
“Playing in wider areas has helped me understand certain defensive situations more, when you’re playing at full-back, you’re in more one-on-one situations.
“Even as a centre-back, you’re being expected to cover different areas of the pitch depending on the system, you have to think about where you put your clearances and things like that.
“I think I have a good understanding of both positions and it’s really beneficial for my career to have that versatility.
“The loan spells were really good for me, just to gain experience of playing football at that intensity.
“At Hearts, the calibre of players we were playing against with Celtic and Rangers in the league, and the fact they pack out the stadiums and they can get on you, there were some tough moments on the pitch and I enjoyed that, I learned a lot.”
Despite his young age, his journey culminated in making his first Premier League start against league leaders Liverpool at the weekend.
“I didn’t really know I was starting that game until the day of the game,” he said before laughing: “I’m thankful for Sky because my family could watch it.”
Hill isn’t the only footballer in his family with little brother Tyler being on Blackpool’s books but there are few people who could truly appreciate the achievement of Premier League football like his dad, Matt.
With his appearances against West Ham and Liverpool, Hill managed to match the number of Premier League appearances his dad made, which came in a career that stretched more than 600 games.
Hill recalls talking to his dad after the game: “He said to me that he was probably more nervous than I was!
“He obviously knows how high the level of a Premier League game is, the level of the players that I was coming up against.
“He messaged me after to tell me how proud he was of me and it was obviously a massive thing for my family.”
However, for Hill, he just wants to move on to the next game and prove his worth to Andoni Iraola and his coaching staff.
He asserted: “We've got to try and park that to the side now.
“I've enjoyed the moment but obviously, it's on to the next game now. We can't really dwell on the past game. It's got to be head down and on to the next one.
“As a team, we’re looking to achieve something really, really positive this season and I think that’s the only way you can do it, enjoy the moments when they come, take the benefits and the confidence but the full focus has to be on the next one.”
