How ex-Portsmouth, West Brom, Stoke City and Crystal Palace boss saved career of former Blues, Nottingham Forest and West Ham United midfielder Nigel Quashie after tragedy

The former midfielder revealed to The Express & Star Baggies podcast, how the ex-Blues manager's act of kindness following the tragic death of his son convinced him to continue playing the game.

Aged just 19, Quashie’s son sadly died while he was playing at Nottingham Forest in 1999, which prompted Pulis to set-up a meeting with a sports psychologist in Portsmouth out of the blue.

And it was the ability to open up and talk about the tragedy which helped him to get back into training and forge a successful career in the game.

Quashie said: ‘I went there (Nottingham Forest) as a big signing at a young age and I lost my son.

‘At 19-years of age, I wasn’t able to deal with coming across something like that at such a young age.

‘Forest were good to me, but the links between me and other clubs came when I wasn’t at a stage in my life where I really wanted to move really quickly.

‘I wasn’t really playing or training because of the situation I was in, and I got a phone call from Tony Pulis and he asked me to come down to Portsmouth.

‘He asked me if I could come down on the train where he’d pick me up and have a chat with me. I was thinking “where’s this guy got my number from. and why does he want to have a chat with me?”.

‘He said “just come down I want to have a chat” and I was like “okay, this guy really wants to speak to me about something”.

‘So I travelled down to Eastleigh airport on the train and he picked me up and thanked me for coming all the way for a chat.

‘I was thinking “this is a long way to have a chat, so what does he want to talk to me about?”.

‘He just said “I want to help you with your life. I know everything that’s happened and what you’ve been through and I’ve got a sports psychologist waiting for you, would you be happy to open up and speak to somebody?”.

‘I got speaking to this guy and opened up and Tony Pulis was waiting for me outside this hotel, he took me back to the airport and I felt a sense of relief and a weight off my shoulders in terms of I’ve lost my son at 19, this guy has called me and organised this.

‘I got back on the train and thought about a lot of things including whether I’m going to play again or not.

‘And that kickstarted me wanting to play again.’

Shortly afterwards, Quashie signed for Pompey under Pulis’ stewardship in August 2000.

He then went on to make 163 appearances in royal blue under four different managers, and played an influential role in promotion to the Premier League in 2003.

He then left Fratton Park for Southampton in 2005, before spells at West Brom, West Ham, Birmingham, Wolves, MK Dons and QPR until he retired in 2010.