Exclusive: Rocky Bushiri reflects on Hibs wake-up call, winning over the fans and Lee Johnson's £10m comment

Introduction to life at Easter Road wasn’t the easiest for Rocky Bushiri.

Identified by former boss Shaun Maloney as the player needed to bolster the Hibs defence in January, the Belgian settled in with a couple of solid performances in his early games but things soon took a turn for the worse.

Hibs didn’t cover themselves in glory, ultimately finishing eighth in the league table with Maloney paying the price for the underachievement, failing to even see out the season after only succeeding Jack Ross the previous December. For Bushiri, he became the poster boy for a questionable signing policy and it seemed certain he would leave the club in the summer, especially after Hibs included him in a list of players who wouldn’t be retained.

Though never confirmed by the club, the understanding is that his 15 appearances last term triggered a clause in the deal which meant, instead of leaving, Bushiri was tied to Hibs for the next three years with a new contract. Regardless of how this circumstance came to happen, it’s turned out to be the best thing for both player and club with the 22-year-old excelling at the heart of the defence and winning over the supporters who criticised him so harshly just earlier this year.

Rocky Bushiri is now enjoying life at Easter Road after winning over his critics. Picture: SNS

"Last season everybody knows Hibs didn't finish where Hibs should finish. So there was extra pressure for everybody coming back this season, especially for me,” said Bushiri in an exclusive interview with the Evening News. “Coming from Norwich City, everybody expects more. I came back after a long injury as well. So I had to focus and it was a big wake up call for myself. I spoke with the manager during the summer as well. Yeah, I had a big wake up call and trained hard.

“Like I say, coming from Norwich, a Premier League team, the fans expected more. I'm here to show now what I can do.”

Even being at the centre of another storm of Hibs’ own making – when he was included in the side to face Greenock Morton despite being suspended for picking up a couple of bookings in the previous two Premier Sports Cup matches – didn’t derail Bushiri’s start to the campaign as he continued to build upon some promising showings once the league season got underway.

However, disaster soon struck when a training-ground injury forced Bushiri out of action in the week leading up to the 1-0 defeat to St Mirren earlier in August. Saturday’s 3-0 victory over the same team was only his second start since returning to full fitness.

“It's great to be back after injury. It was a bit sad because it happened in a training session,” he said. “Thankfully it's behind us now, I'm back and I'm going to try and help the team as much as I can.

“It's just part of it, isn't it? We don't decide on when we get injured. The most important thing is to always come back stronger and not to lose focus.”

Bushiri was one of the star players against the Buddies, earning himself the club’s man-of-the-match award as he routinely dealt with the physical challenge of going up against both Curtis Main and Jonah Ayunga, the ‘Bash Brothers’ leading St Mirren’s attack.

Since returning to the team Bushiri has been playing in a role more suited to him as the middle centre-back in a defensive three. It enables Paul Hanlon and Ryan Porteous to focus on playing the ball out from the back and starting attacks, while Bushiri can concentrate on what he’s good at.

“I thought I was pretty good but it's thanks to my team. They put me in situations where I can really show my strengths,” he said. “It's collective. My team really helped me a lot. They really believe in me and it feels I can perform at my best.

“I really like playing alongside Paul and Ryan. Those who know me will know I like to defend first and foremost at centre-back, so I really enjoy it.”

In the aftermath of the win over Stephen Robinson’s side, manager Lee Johnson admitted he wasn’t entirely enamoured with Bushiri when he first walked in the door at the club’s East Mains training centre. But the player’s performances have been to such a standard that Johnson is now a fully-fledged Bushiri acolyte and someone he doesn’t wish to see go unless it’s for big money.

“When I walked through the door he was one that I was more than happy to move him on, and now I wouldn’t let him go for £10million,” Johnson said, a little tongue-in-cheek. “I’ve been very impressed with him. A couple of weeks into pre-season we gave him simple rules to which he has to adhere, in terms of his defending. In the past, when I watched him, I felt he was too rash in his decision-making, but we have drilled him and he has been a good student, really willing to learn.”

For Bushiri, hearing such praise is just another reason why he’s now loving life in green and white.

“It's good to hear things like that. I'm with him the whole week and the staff and it's their job to make us better,” he said. “It has to come from us players as well. We have to show that we want to learn and we want to work hard. I'm always hoping to get better. I feel good.”

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