January 22, 2022...Martin Nash on Atiba Hutchinson (from York United website)

'A SPECIAL PLAYER AND ONE OF THE NICEST HUMAN BEINGS YOU WILL EVER MEET': MARTIN NASH
ON THE EVERGREEN ATIBA HUTCHINSON

York United's Head Coach praises his old friend after another superb display during
Canada's crucial World Cup qualifier win over Honduras.

As York United FC Head Coach Martin Nash stepped away from playing in 2010, one former
international team-mate of his was enjoying what seemed like the purple patch of his career.

That same year, Atiba Hutchinson swapped Denmark's top-flight for a high-profile switch
to Dutch giants PSV Eindhoven, but not after being named the Danish Superliga's Player
of the Year following a fourth league title success with FC Copenhagen. His performances
also ensured he was named Canada's best male player for the first time.

Now, more than eleven years later, the midfielder remains a crucial ingredient in the
national team. Defying the ageing process, he's a consistently standout performer.
And at the age of 38, perhaps his impact on a thrilling, compelling but still largely
inexperienced group is more critical now than ever before.

On Thursday night, he delivered another magnificent display in Canada's significant 2-0
World Cup qualifier win away to Honduras: a relentless rock in the middle of the park,
an always-comforting parenting presence meticulously minding the house as the excitable kids
run wild and free higher up the field.

When he signed for Turkish side Besiktas in 2013, it may have seemed a signposted move to many.
Perhaps he'd stay for two seasons before that inevitable slow drift down the pyramid, his advancing
years making him easily expendable. But, that's not Hutchinson's style. He embodies
the word commitment. And the fans in Istanbul quickly began to find that out.

There was a league title in his third season (a first in seven years for the club) and then
Besiktas made it back-to-back championships in 2017, with Hutchinson central to the team's
superb run to the UEFA Champions League knockout stage that followed in 2018. But, the old dog
didn't simply slink to the shadows for a well-deserved rest. Instead, with every new season,
Hutchinson returned rejuvenated and ready for more. When the contracts became shorter and with
extensions triggered only by various performance-related criteria, he was fuelled rather than
frustrated. He relished the work. And in 2021, after 40 appearances in all competitions,
Hutchinson tasted another league title, plus the Turkish Cup - a first for Besiktas in a decade.
Unsurprisingly, the campaign ensured a ninth season at the club for their evergreen warrior.

Nash continues to be amazed by the calibre of Huthinson's contributions and believes his
ex-midfield partner is exactly what the current Canada squad needs.

"A fabulous player, a joy to play with," he says.

"He's very special. A very smart player, good technically, he's got a bit of everything.
And the thing with Atiba is that he's one of the nicest human beings you will ever meet. A great guy
on and off the field, a great person to have around the squad and even at his age he's still
doing the business when and where it matters. He's great for the young players to look up to.
In fact, I think he's the perfect guy for that role because he's always gonna get the job done
too and he's great to learn off and be around. A wonderful person, a wonderful leader. We're all
lucky he's still around playing and it's nice to see him out there because it keeps that
connection with my playing days. It makes me feel less old when someone's still playing
that I used to play with."

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