Middlesbrough forward Pharrell Willis speaks about his loan move to Maidstone United and learning from ex-Man Utd and England midfielder Michael Carrick at the Riverside

Maidstone loanee Pharrell Willis is hoping to show the talent that convinced Michael Carrick to give him a Championship debut as a teenager.

Willis was just 19 when Carrick, who’d recently succeeded Chris Wilder as Middlesbrough manager, named him on the bench for a game at Blackpool in November 2022.

He was introduced in the second half of Boro’s 3-0 win and by the end of the week had signed a new contract, having joined the Teesside club’s academy as a 16-year-old.

Willis, now 22, recalled his elevation to the first-team picture under Carrick, the former Manchester United, Spurs, West Ham and England midfielder.

“Wilder was there and I was playing 21s and I was on form, getting goals here and there,” said Willis, whose Boro deal expires this summer.

“Carrick came in and I think I was training with the first team and just caught his eye on a special day.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity.

“To make my debut was like a dream come true.

“Unfortunately, I got injured a couple of months later when I was supposed to go on loan.

“Everything happens for a reason and you’ve just got to keep going forward in football.

“There’s everything to gain. Football’s crazy. There’s highs, there’s lows, you’ve just got to keep going.”

Carrick won five Premier League titles and the Champions League during his time at Old Trafford, and played 34 times for England, including an appearance at the 2006 World Cup under Sven-Goran Eriksson.

He’s also considered one of the brightest young managers in English football, making him the sort of person Willis could only learn from.

“He was a highly-rated player and he’s a highly-rated manager, so I get a lot of advice from him,” said Willis.

“When I’ve gone to him, I ask him, ‘How can I affect the game