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The Kenyan defender, who is Bristol City's reigning player of the season, has revealed why he has Thierry Henry's famous shirt number tattoed on his arm
Kenyan defender Zak Vyner has revealed his earliest memories of football, revealing why he has number 14 tattooed on his left arm.
Vyner, who was born to a Kenyan mother and an English father, has become the cornerstone of the Bristol City defence, who are pushing hard to get promoted to the English Premier League next season.
However, the towering defender initially wanted to become a striker when he was younger, emulating Arsenal great Thierry Henry.
Speaking to the Bristol City YouTube channel after signing his new contact, Vyner revealed that having the number tattooed on his left arm was partly inspired by the Arsenal and France legend.
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“When my brother was playing - he used to play for Dulwich Hamlet when we were younger - and I just used to kick a ball against the wall whilst he was training and playing and stuff, obviously we were kids, I was seven and he was nine,” Vyner said.
“When we moved over to Bath, it was, I played for team buff Arsenal and we played locally there and it was a fun time, just tournament football and you are a kid,just running around, just trying to kick a ball as a striker, so I was just trying to emulate Thierry Henry.
“Did not happen as much as I would have wanted it to be but it was a good sort of time as you are a kid just having fun playing football, so that is just probably my earliest memory.
"I was born on the 14th of May. It was partly that but Thierry Henry is obviously the reason why I like to play football and yeah.”Vyner has revealed how he got scouted by Bristol City and got taken into their academy when he was just eight years old.
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“I was playing for Bath Arsenal at a tournament and a scout came up to my mum and dad and gave them a leaflet saying ‘ We want to take him along and’ come to a training session’.
“There was loads of kids there and just play and train whatever. I must have done alright and I got scouted.”
Reigning City players' player of the year Vyner, 26, has played 148 times for the Robins since his debut in 2016.
"I'm going into a big part of my career," the City academy graduate centre-back told the club's website.
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"To be doing it with the club I have been at since I was eight years old is even more special."
Vyner, who has been ever-present in City's first four league games of the season, added: "I'm super happy to be signing this contract and to get it over the line.
"We've got a good, hungry squad. I want to try my best to contribute as much as I can to take us as high as possible in the league and get us into the Premier League - that's the club's and my ambition."
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