Dan Burn is still getting his head around the fact that he is a Newcastle United player. This is more than a club for the new arrival. In fact, it is not an exaggeration to say that the Blyth man would not have left Brighton for any other side on deadline day. Aside from the obvious, of course.
Burn was not only previously on Newcastle's books as a youngster but the 29-year-old was, also, a season ticket holder in the East Stand, who witnessed some special games as a supporter, including the 1-0 win against Juventus in 2002 and the 5-1 Tyne-Wear derby victory eight years later.
Like so many in the North East, and beyond, the £13m signing grew up idolising Alan Shearer and was genuinely star struck when he met the Newcastle legend as a grown man at an engagement party many years later. So much so, Burn's wife had to come over and effectively rescue him.
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It is easy to see why returning to Newcastle means so much to Burn - particularly after being released by the club at the age of 11 nearly two decades ago.
Rather than being deterred by that setback, Burn has used it to fuel his remarkable rise from non league to the Premier League - much to the delight of those who worked with him.
Ian Skinner, who was Burn's academy coach in his first spell at Newcastle, never forgot how 'whatever challenge was laid in front of him, Dan just had this infectious smile and tackled it head on'.
"Even as a young boy, Dan would maybe admit himself he wasn't technically as good as some of the other players that he trained with, but what he did do was apply himself 100%," Skinner told ChronicleLive.
"His work rate and his willingness to listen and learn were superb. It's no surprise that determination has taken him through non-league football and onto the many Football League and Premier League clubs that he's played for.
"I was never surprised that he made it just through his desire and his willingness to really go and work hard to be the best he could be."
This was not the first opportunity Burn had to return to Newcastle. In fact, back in 2011, during Alan Pardew's time in charge, the Magpies made a late move for the youngster just as he was about to join Fulham from Darlington.
Although Burn was well-aware that the chance to join his boyhood club might not come around again, in the nicest possible way, the 6ft 7in defender wanted to get away from the North East so he could concentrate his on football.
Now settled with a young family, Burn felt ready to make the move more than a decade later and Newcastle are getting a player in the form of his life as Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku will attest to following their recent battle. Indeed, it was only last month that Brighton's club account tweeted: 'The best player in the Premier League over the last few weeks? Big Dan Burn.'
As well as being comfortable on the ball, a good reader of the game, a rare naturally left-footed centre-back and a presence in both boxes, Burn is a leader, too, who even asked for his shoulder to be popped back in so he could continue to play on for Brighton against Brentford on Boxing Day.
Sven Botman and Diego Carlos may have been Newcastle's top defensive targets in January but, as far as alternatives go, Burn could be just what the Magpies need at this moment in time.
Indeed, Eddie Howe has already highlighted how Burn knows 'exactly what it means to represent this club' and how the new signing will be a 'big presence' on and off the field.
Paul Cook, who managed Burn at Wigan, between 2017 and 2019, certainly agrees with Howe and has not doubt that his former captain will be a 'massive acquisition' for Newcastle.
"You could not speak highly enough of a character like Dan Burn," he told ChronicleLive. "In today's day and age, where footballers have become a little bit distant to the communities and to normal fans, getting lads like Dan is quite unique and rare.
"I'm so proud of him. It's great to see his career go on and Newcastle have not just signed a great lad, but a great player, too.
"He's just committed to football. He's a genuinely committed guy. He trains every day like players should train. His attitude to the game is absolutely top drawer and he's a really infectious character. He will have a great effect on everyone that he comes into contact with."
That positive influence was even evident during Burn's younger days at Fulham. Brede Hangeland told ChronicleLive that his fellow centre-back was a 'sensible guy who was willing to learn and not afraid of a challenge' while former midfielder Jamie O'Hara recalled how his former team-mate 'spoke up on matters all the time' in the dressing room.
Burn just simply wanted to play and was one of the few players on Fulham's books, when the club were in the Premier League, to drop down to League One to get further experience in 2012.
It was during that spell at Yeovil Town that Burn ruptured ankle ligaments just three weeks before the play-off semi-final first-leg against Sheffield United.
Burn should have been out for six weeks but was so desperate to help his side that he spent countless hours in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber at Fulham to make himself available for the game - much to manager Gary Johnson's amazement.
"It looked like he had gone to Lourdes - not back to Fulham," Johnson told ChronicleLive.
"We couldn't believe he was fit for the game and then, obviously, the adrenaline kicked in, knowing that he was playing in front of a big crowd in a massive game."
Following a further loan spell at Birmingham City, Burn got his chance at Fulham and soon started wearing the number 33 shirt in a nod to the house he grew up in back in Blyth.
It said it all about how obsessed the family were about Newcastle that the number 33 house number was even displayed as a mini black-and-white shirt.
Burn has often been seen back in Blyth over the years. Indeed, Sandra Orr, who is the chairperson of Blyth Town, where Burn played between the age of eight to 10, quipped that 'if he comes onto our site now and tries to be inconspicuous, as a 6ft 7in blonde, it's not going to happen!'
Clearly, there was never any danger of Burn losing touch with his roots during his stint in the capital as former Fulham boss Kit Symons remembered.
"It wasn't something he harped on about, but we were well-aware of the strong link to the North East and he was certainly very proud of where he was from," Symons told ChronicleLive. "That was just the type of lad he was."
On that point, Burn remains close with a number of his former team-mates from his previous spell in the North East, at Darlington, including Ian Miller.
In fact, Burn was even due to sort tickets for Miller and his sons for Brighton's FA Cup tie against Spurs at the Amex on Saturday.
Miller is looking forward to coming up to St James' Park one day to see his friend and former room mate play and knows how hard he has worked to get to this point.
"Dan wasn't technically brilliant at Darlington but he had all the attributes and he was so coachable because he wanted to learn," he told ChronicleLive.
"He wasn't one of those where as soon as the gaffer said training was finished, he was off. He would stay out and be the last one out - even if he was going to do shooting drills.
"But we took advantage of that! He had this blue Peugeot 206 so we would move it around the car park and, one day, we covered it in branches."
Burn had been pushing trolleys in Asda before he was spotted by Darlington and offered a scholarship and route into the professional game in 2009.
Before Burn could get started, however, the youngster had to make a phone call to Mick Maley, the former secretary at New Hartley Juniors.
"Dan said, 'Mick, I've got some bad news. I can't play for New Hartley any more,'" Maley told ChronicleLive.
"I went, 'Why's that?'
"He said, 'Darlington have offered me a one-year contract'.
"I said, 'Dan, that's not bad news - that's brilliant news!"
It was Darlington manager Mark Cooper who went on to give Burn his professional debut and who personally contacted Premier League managers to alert them to this promising youngster.
One current top-flight manager came to watch Burn, and decided he was not for them, but Cooper 'always thought' the youngster 'had a chance' because of his attitude.
"When he was an apprentice, or a YTS, he would make sure all the jobs were done," Cooper told ChronicleLive.
"He was a bit of a leader of that group in making sure everything was done and the balls were blown up and the kit was ready.
"When he got opportunities to join in the first team, the biggest compliment you could give him was that his peers, the older pros, respected him straight away because he came into the group and he held his own."
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