It is fair to say that no one who witnessed David Raya's early games for Southport thought they had seen a future Champions League finalist. 'Spanish Dave', as he became affectionately known, had an eventful half-season on loan at the then National League side during the 2014/15 campaign.
It was a baptism of fire for the 19-year-old, who arrived from parent club Blackburn Rovers. He conceded three goals in his first match, while five were put past him a couple of weeks later. But by the end of his spell on Merseyside, he had endeared himself to everyone at the Sandgrounders and made his name with a herculean FA Cup performance.
Among the Southport fans who will be rooting for the Arsenal goalkeeper in Saturday's Champions League final is club stalwart Rob Urwin. 'It was a strange one,' recalls the club volunteer and website editor. 'He came from Blackburn just five days after his 19th birthday. His first day was a game at Macclesfield. He had never talked to the players before.'
'It was an absolute nightmare and he didn't have the best game. We were struggling as a team and lost 3-0. Everybody thought, "Flippin' eck, what have we got here?" It was hard for him at first. It's a rugged league with big, physical players barging into you.'
They say it is better to finish well than start well, and Raya did just that with a stunning performance on a big stage: a third-round FA Cup tie at Derby County, where he single-handedly kept his side in the game before the heartbreak of conceding a last-gasp penalty.
'That's where he made his name with one of the best goalkeeping performances I've ever seen as a Southport fan,' says Urwin. 'Nobody ever forgets that day. And he very nearly saved a 94th-minute penalty, which would have earned us an awful lot of money with a replay. He got so close to it!'
'Once he settled in, he came on leaps and bounds. You could see he was going to be good but, to be honest, not to the level he's achieved.'
Most loan spells are quickly forgotten as both parties move on, but not Raya's Southport stint. Urwin says: 'After he finished with us after the Derby game, we went to the Blackburn training ground to say thank you and presented him with a lifetime membership to our supporters' trust. That shows the esteem he was held in by everyone at the club and the impact he made. He was very humble and he came and talked to us. We're very fond of him and have watched his progress since.'
There was more to Raya's time at Southport than what happened on the pitch. He grew up and developed a healthy respect for English football's lower levels. Urwin adds: 'He always says he grew up at Southport as a footballer because he realised he wasn't being pampered. He had to wash his kit and stuff like that. We love the fact he recognises that. For those 24 games that he was with us, he really learned what football was about.'
Despite what he has gone on to achieve: graduating to the top flight with Brentford and becoming a title winner with the Gunners, Raya hasn't forgotten his time at Haig, underlined by a small but touching gesture to Urwin's wife and retiring club photographer, Julia. 'I've got a signed shirt of his on my office wall,' says Urwin. 'My wife was a big fan of him. She finished being our club photographer recently and he actually liked the post [about her] on the club's Instagram. She was made up about that.'
'Even now, everyone says it's great to see "Spanish Dave" doing well. We don't have many who have reached his heights. OK, he wasn't our player, but we still think of him as one of ours.'
