'I didn't even negotiate': Christian Burgess recalls 'no-brainer' Portsmouth moment which transformed career
The central defender joined Pompey 10 years ago this week - and never regretted it
Christian Burgess has revealed he was so desperate to join Pompey, he didn’t even bother to negotiate wages.
This week marked 10 years since the popular central defender arrived on the south coast after being purchased from Peterborough for an undisclosed fee.
Burgess was Paul Cook’s seventh recruit in the summer of 2015 as the newly-appointed manager began assembling the squad which would claim the League Two title two years later.
He totalled 210 games and scored 12 goals, while captured the 2019 Checkatrade Trophy and was crowned The News/Sports Mail Player of the Season, before leaving for Royale Union Saint-Gillois in July 2020.
And the 33-year-old insists his July 2010 arrival at Fratton Park was such a ‘no-brainer’, he happily dropped down from League One and didn’t even haggle over the contract being offered.
‘I wanted to get out of Peterborough - and they wanted me out’
He told The News: ‘I signed for Pompey almost on the phone when they told me what the terms were.
‘I was away in Croatia and the terms were only a little more than what I was on at Peterborough. I wanted to get out and they wanted me out, so it was more of a straightforward move than anything.
‘I saw Pompey’s potential as a big club, I remember playing there, the fans, the atmosphere, it was a no-brainer for me. I didn't negotiate, I said yes I’ll take it. I didn’t even know who else they were going to sign.
‘I was offered £200 more a week and was very happy to sign it. This was Pompey, after all. Cookie was also there, a really good manager whose Chesterfield team had impressed me with their style of play.
‘If he’s the manager and it’s a club as big as Pompey, it just equals success.
‘I was desperate to get out of Peterborough, we just took what we were given, there was no negotiating, I just wanted to prove myself and play for Pompey. We didn’t even try to negotiate, I just said to my agent: “Yes, let’s do it, let’s go”.
‘We should have gone up that first season (2015-16), to be honest, but kept everyone and went up the following year.’
The Belgian league champions
It has been quite a ride for the defender, who has totalled six trophies in the decade which followed his June 2015 arrival at Fratton Park - two of them with the Blues.
Kyle Bennett, Kal Naismith, Enda Stevens, Gary Roberts, Adam Barton and Adam McGurk had all signed for Pompey before the arrival of the Peterborough man, with Cook’s overhaul beginning to gather pace.
12 months at Peterborough
Then aged 23, Burgess had started just 28 League One matches in his maiden season with the Posh, having been recruited from Middlesbrough in August 2014 - but then willingly dropped in League Two.
He added: ‘That first summer of recruitment at Pompey was really impressive. I am not sure exactly how the club did it, but that was down to Cookie’s influence and the players he had seen in leagues he had managed in.
‘A lot of those guys went on to achieve some really good stuff. Enda and Adam Webster played in the Premier League, Clarkie (Matt Clarke) has been in the Championship for years, Robbo was towards the end of his career and went on to play for Wigan at Championship level.
‘It was a good window!’
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