'The Style of Styles.'

Maybe it’s part of who we are and what we identify with?

Respect for an underdog?

Someone urgently looking for a club to call home?

For home is where the heart is…

Callum Styles encapsulates all of those criteria, and last but not least…

Taking an opportunity with open arms.

When for many others this season it’s seemingly been one more chance.

For far too long..

Callum’s Baggies performances have reflected his character..

Optimistic

Positive

Energized

Honest

And if we are to be honest, when Styles signed his four year WBA contract, the ninth of last summer’s extremely busy window of huge successes and abject failures, many of the supporters were wary of the prospect of a player who’d bounced around the loan market, never securing a transfer, and was even ostracized by some of his former Tykes faithful!

Truth was.

Styles, at 24 was looking for a home..

One he has now found..

Callum Styles was born on 27th March, 2000 in the Lancashire town of Bury, and if you listen to Callum’s warm but deadpan Lancashire accent, you can hear similar overtones to a lad who went to the same school as Styles, but who is twice Callum’s age..

Paul Scholes.

Callum’s home background was solid, his dad is an electrician and the family instilling core values of 

“Working hard and respecting people”..

Literally the same family mantra, of his new boss at The Albion, Tony Mowbray.

[There’s no doubt, as I’ll explore later in the article, what a great boss, Mogga will be for Styles in so many ways].

Being a Lancastrian, there was a natural allegiance to being a Man Utd fan as a kid, his hero was Wayne Rooney, who Callum saw as a ‘street or playground footballer’, to be an absolute strength..

Styles recent angle on academy football and how it may restrict player self development is really interesting, 

“Academies can take that street footballer out of you, mould you into something else….”

That’s really at the heart of what I see when I watch Styles play football.

A street playing spirit that is undiminished.

It thrives in him.

To see Styles control a ball with a delicious first touch and run into space, or at defenders, you clearly see that kid resides happily in him, still lives and breathes…

Interestingly, one of Tony Mowbray's key pieces of advice to players who have lost their self confidence are,

To find that uninhibited JOY of playing..

To EXPRESS..

To be YOU..

[Sounds like Mogga's potential recipe to success with Grady Diangana?]

Mogga’s teams have always expressed, no doubt Callum will be his man.

At his first club though, the Styles style wasn’t enough..

Despite spending eight formative years at Burnley from the age of eight, Styles was released aged 16, to an uncertain future.

But dealing with early adversity was to be the first of many challenges for Styles to overcome.

In reality though, it’s how you face and overcome adversity that marks you out as a strong character, and this was the first test for Styles, who quickly resumed his career at a place and club that was fully aware of his talent.

His home town club, Bury.

Gigg Lane, Bury’s home ground is just seventeen miles from Burnley, but in terms of opportunity, a different world.

Callum had what can only be described as an extraordinary first few months at Bury, signing for The Shakers in March 2016 and making his debut eight weeks later, as a substitute, at just 16 yrs and 41 days old.

Bury won the game 3-2, but the game and Styles place will go down in history as he was the first ever player born in the 21st Century to feature in a Football League game.

The manager who gave Callum his debut was David Flitcroft, who had some idea about what it takes for a teen to make his debut, as his own playing baptism was at 18 for Preston, a couple of decades before.

The first thing Styles [who looked much younger than 16 to be honest] said to Flitcroft post game was, 

“Wow, that was fast!”

It was to be a coincidental time of notable debuts, as four weeks previously, the first player born in 1999 made his Premier League debut.

Of course a game and character we know well.

Sunderland v WBA.

The debutant?

Jonathan Leko.

Styles' debut resurfaced in a painful way, as a dream debut soured by the fact that the FA judged Callum to be an ineligible player for Bury, just two months later.

On examination, when Styles signed for Bury, his contract was initially as a trialist, and this quickly progressed to signing an Academy Contract..

However the second contract was signed after the March 24th deadline, so Styles debuted as an illegal player..

Bury admitted all charges and were deducted the 3 Points gained for the win, resulting in them dropping from 14th to 16th in Division 1.

The following season at Gigg Lane, saw an influx of new players and some delicious WBA connections you’d never expect to see in the same team, as they were decades apart..

But in that 2016/17 Bury squad, the likes of ex WBA clientele, Chris Kirkland, Ishmael Miller and Leon Barnett were all team mates of the cherubic local teen, and it seems almost impossible thinking about it now?

But it was a season of seemingly impossibilities at Gigg Lane as Jermaine Pennant also signed for The Shakers!

[I'm not sure if Pennant would forget he’d left a Porsche at Bury Station, as he’d done in Zaragoza Station a few years earlier?

Pennant actually initially denied owning the Porsche, but the car plate P33NNT might have been a clue of ownership..!]

Although it was to be a rough time for Bury, missing relegation by only one point, it took just one match for the third Shakers manager of the season, the ex Newcastle Utd midfielder Lee Clark to recognize a fellow player of technical excellence, and Callum signed his first professional contract soon after in February 2017.

Clark’s first impression said everything,

“He is an unbelievable talent and a very special player. Wow, he was awesome!" 

The downward curve and eventual writing on the wall, for a club as proud and steeped in FA history as Bury, was now starting to become precipitous in the 2017/18 season, their 133rd year as a club, finishing rock bottom of Division 1 with just eight wins in forty six games, fifteen points from safety.

Callum had played just under a quarter of those games, but the pace of change was to accelerate way further.

Three months after relegation, Callum signed for Barnsley for 500,000 Pounds on a four year contract, but was immediately loaned back to Bury, where he played 15 games before returning to Oakwell in January 2019.

For Callum his first season with Barnsley and his last season with Bury were again noteworthy, perhaps unique, in helping TWO teams to WIN promotion in the SAME season!

Styles made seven appearances for the Tykes, and like Bury, were also Runners Up but this was in Division 1.

Barnsley were a talented team, with five of the PFA Team of the Year being fellow Tykes, including Wales striker Kiefer Moore, Brentford centre half, Ethan Pinnock and a midfielder from Leeds who missed just one game all season…

Alex Mowatt..

Although Bury were promoted as Runners Up in Division 2, it was to be their last ever competitive Football League season, being expelled on August 29th 2019, due to ownership issues and financial collapse.

125 years and it was over..

So sad, particularly for a home town kid such as Styles.

The following season in the higher level of The Championship was the one of a desperate fight against relegation for The Tykes, three different managers and a last game heroic win, that would coincidentally help enable West Brom to get promoted to the Premier League.

That in many ways, awful, COVID affected season of 2019/20.

Barnsley’s third manager in nine months was Gerhard Struber, but it took time for the Austrian to work his magic, and with nine games to go, the Tykes looked doomed to relegation..

But a much improved run of the penultimate eight games accruing twelve points, Barnsley still had an outside chance to stay up, as long as they beat Brentford away, but that would mean nothing if Charlton Athletic got at least a draw at already promoted Leeds Utd..

In a game entwined to recent Albion history, with Mowatt dictating from midfield, Styles opened the scoring, his first ever goal for The Tykes, but with Brentford, boasting 57 goals between their trident of talented forwards in Ollie Watkins, Said Benrhama and Brian Mbeumo, an equalizer was as seemingly inevitable as relegation for Barnsley, and occurred in the 71st Minute through DaSilva..

It looked all over for Barnsley, but a last-gasp winner by the Kenyan defender Clarke Odour, staved off relegation, with deep irony the only goal Odour ever scored for the Tykes.

Barnsley were safe, as Charlton were hammered 4-0 by Leeds and were subsequently relegated by a single point.

During this time of lockdown, a time of introspection for all, became a turning point for Callum Styles, when an innocent inquiry into the background of his beloved Grandma, Magdolena, changed his life,

“I knew Grandma was from a foreign country but didn’t know which one?’

After asking his parents, it was discovered, Magdolena was originally from Hungary and his grandfather, Jan was from Ukraine, but the Styles could not find his grandfather's passport..

An innocent quip by Styles about this family connection to the Magyars, in the Barnsley Programme, The Oakwell Review, set the wheels for the most unlikely of international careers moving forward.

The Hungarian authorities quickly connected with Styles' agent, saying as SOON as they were to receive Callum’s newly processed Hungarian Passport, to arrange to fly over to Budapest to train with the Magyars national team.

For the 21 year old Styles, his first reaction to the call up was one of innocence and excitement, finding it hard to grasp the reality of what was going on.

Progress was incredibly fast and understandably, when he made his debut for Hungary, Magdolena, the Grandma who passed away when Callum was ten was in his mind, remembered so fondly for her Chicken Noodle Soup, Callum would eat when visiting her on his way back from school.

Callum’s tribute and pledge to his beloved Grandma before his international debut against Serbia was,

“I’ll be playing for her, and for her sons and daughters”,

Football is a universal language, technically good players gravitate to each other naturally, but by far the bigger challenge was the actual learning of a new language for Callum.

It certainly helped having an Italian manager in Marco Rossi, whose preference for team talks was in English, but having a modicum of Hungarian was bound to help in the settling in process for his adopted country,

Styles has rightly commented 

“It’s in my DNA”

Language acquisition more often than not seems now to be through the Duolingo App. 

It was very amusing to hear the first time his new teammates tested their Bury born Hungarian linguistic skills, the initial test was the colours of the balls on a Pool Table!

One thing Styles insisted on after playing for Hungary in 23 international appearances, is NEVER swapping shirts with an opponent post game..

Callum’s rhetoric is that he only swaps shirts with former teammates.

In fact Callum’s first Baggies shirt was No.27, not the No.4 he wears with such pride. [And who doesn't think of Cantello when they see that shirt?]

The first WBA shirt Callum owned, was of his friend, Alex Mowatt post Sunderland v WBA just nine months ago.

The next Championship season, under future WBA boss Valérien Ismaël, and a core of future Baggies thriving for The Tykes, Mowatt, Styles and on loan from Orlando City, a dynamic and very fit Daryl Dike.

Dike scored almost a goal every other game in that loan spell, [9 in 19 games], and was a key part of the unexpectedly dramatic impact in The Championship as Barnsley finished an amazing 5th, but lost to Swansea in the Playoffs..

With ‘Valball’ being a thing of the past at Oakwell, and without Mowatt’s prompting from midfield, the following season was a disaster for Barnsley, finishing last in The Championship, despite Styles playing 46 games.

The next two seasons in Division 1 saw Styles were categorized by loyal Tykes supporters, labelling this period, ‘The saga of Callum Styles.'

In order to ‘protect their asset’, Barnsley signed Styles to a three year contract in August 2022, but immediately loaned him out to Millwall, for the season, with Millwall having an option to buy.

Things began well, Callum started the first 13 games, the peak probably being the irony of scoring v West Brom in October 2022, until a serious quadriceps injury forced Styles to miss the next three months, a time he reflected as,

“My lowest point, I lost myself a little..”

Although Styles ended the season with Millwall, the option to buy was declined..

A similar scenario occurred last season, the 'saga' getting deeper and more frustrating for Styles and the Tykes faithful, with Callum playing 22 games for Barnsley before joining Sunderland in the January window, and a similar loan to buy option.

In his dozen appearances for the Maccums, to no one’s great surprise, Styles peaked again against WBA, creating an assist for Pierre Akwar, the only goal of the game in April 2024.

Maybe hurting the Baggies on a regular occasion had left a lasting impression on the WBA hierarchy’s minds, but having such a recent transitory career, by now had obviously affected Styles deeply.

The start of the 2024/25 season, Barnsley were due to play Mansfield Town at Oakwell, but the saga of Styles in Tykes eyes was about to reach its nadir with the revelation that this was a game Callum did not want to participate in.

It was the third year in a row Styles season had started with his career in a state of flux, and Barnsley Head Coach, Darrell Clarke reasoned,

"Callum didn’t feel in the right frame of mind so I didn’t involve him. I’d rather have players whose mindset is in the right place".

In the last year of a contract and as Clarke alluded to, Championship clubs interested in Styles, a permanent move away from Oakwell was the only option and solution..

Certainly when West Brom signed Callum just over two weeks later, the ire of Tykes fans, labelling Styles as ‘spoilt’ or ‘entitled’ was eyebrow raising?

It’s however rare at any club you’ve done very well for the majority of your career, and have ambitions beyond, to leave with good grace.

The saga had simply gone on too long..

Styles was to be Carlos Corberan’s ninth signing of the summer window and the second from Barnsley, joining Devonte Cole..

It’s fair to say, it’s been a contrasting level of impact from these two former Tykes!

When Styles signed for WBA, my focus was on an eye opening detail in his contract.

Four years.

That is a leap of faith in the long term ability of a player whose previous two loans had resulted in a ‘no thank you’ to the buy option.

But the length of the contract?

Styles would still only be 28 and reaching his peak, injuries notwithstanding, so it was a classic back your judgement as a recruiting methodology to tie in Callum to a ‘Kipre contract length’ of four years.

I was very taken by Styles genuine nature at his first Baggies interview, smiling broadly and stating, 

“I’ve come to a place to call my permanent home”.

It makes sense.

Corberan when coaching The Albion was a considered presence and certainly not a risk taker in terms of selection, but it took just a week for Callum to be introduced to the Albion faithful, making his debut at home as a substitute v Swansea.

His second appearance took far longer to occur, just over a month later, the seeds of absolute doubt over the lack of a Baggies playmaker in my mind were really emerging, when Styles came on for his second cameo appearance v Middlesbrough.

For me, that’s when my suspicions were reinforced, we’d signed an underused, technically excellent player, who should be starting for The Albion.

Energy personified, always wanting possession, a very good first touch and as confidence developed, a solid range of passing with plenty of potential for creativity were the Styles traits.

We honestly don’t have too many of those..

As Styles' confidence grew so did the crowd's appreciation of a player in every tradition of the mould we judge to be a true Baggie.

Genuine effort, love for the game, proud to wear the shirt.

Simply put, a player to relish and enjoy.

Whether Styles is an undersized, left back, we can use as a bedrock for the future of the team is up for debate?

And let’s face it, just under forty years ago, we had England's best.

You’d however be myopic to not note Styles been beaten on the back post a couple of times and crosses have come in quite frequently from his side of the pitch.

Seven yellow cards in nineteen games is a real worry?

But you are ignoring his strengths at your peril.

Styles is no doubt a free spirit, a throwback player in many ways.

An absolute strength is his first touch, to move away from or create danger, and the speed of thought and spatial awareness gives him a huge advantage over an opponent..

Also, it’s obvious Styles reads the game with an uncanny depth, as anyone given a floating/free role must possess.

It’s amazing seeing the various wide areas of the pitch Styles pops up in, and a true nightmare for defenders.

With the more creative thinking Tony Mowbray taking over from at times, the overtly conservative Corberan, this could be the making of Styles..

It’s very noticeable in ALL of the opening interviews Callum took on when joining new clubs when asked about his positional strength, he replied every time..

“Versatility”

And the array of positions he’s adept in.

Signing for Albion, a more mature awareness was kicking in, the bigger picture that being a utility player can be a blessing or a curse.

His key quote was,

‘I’d like to knuckle down to one position”.

One of the most exciting and fascinating aspects of the Mowbray reign will be seeing how Tony Mowbray considers this Styles conundrum.

Right boss.

Right player.

Right system.

We are all going to enjoy witnessing the answer to that!