Last year I served coffee at Caffe Nero, now I'm facing Man Utd in the FA Cup
NATHAN WOOD was making lattes and cappuccinos in a coffee shop in Newport this time last year.
But today he dreams of putting the mochas on Manchester United.
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The 26-year-old County midfielder thought his chances of becoming a professional footballer were over and worked at a local Caffé Nero to make ends meet.
But Newport signed the lifelong Manchester United fan in the summer – and incredibly he now has a chance to meet his heroes on Rodney Parade.
He told SunSport: 'If you had come into the coffee shop and told me I would have the chance to play against Manchester United in the FA Cup here in Newport, I would have thought you were crazy!
“While you're choosing someone's espresso or Americano, don't you think that in a year's time you'll be up against five-time Champions League winner Casemiro or Lisandro Martinez, who just won a World Cup with Lionel Messi!
“I worked there while playing part-time in the Welsh Premier League for Penybont to pay the bills.
“Four days a week it was from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. I had to learn everything about coffee: the right amount of foam, the beans, not burning anything and how to steam the milk.
“I still stop by on the way to practice to grab a flat white, because it's a little stronger, not as much milk, and gives you energy to run across a field.”
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Proudly born and bred in Newport, Wood watched the team as a child when they played non-league – and fondly remembers the club's first game in the EFL against Accrington Stanley 11 years ago with his father and grandfather. .
But the midfielder's own story is even more remarkable, as he thought his dreams of turning professional were shattered when County released him as a 17-year-old after coming through the club's academy.
He said: “I was gutted because I thought this was my last chance to turn professional. Finally I went to Undy, who was at the bottom of the entire Welsh pyramid system.
“And while I didn't get the elite coaching I enjoyed at a professional club, I learned how to be kicked and pushed in men's football.”
Wood went on to study sports coaching at Cardiff University and became a support worker for vulnerable schoolchildren.
But he also spent four years at Penybont, where he was promoted to the Welsh Premier League. After scoring 15 goals last season, he once again caught the attention of Newport, who signed him this summer.
He said: “Without Penybont and the manager Rhys Griffiths and his assistant Martyn Giles I wouldn't have developed the way I did.”
His favorite player is Marcus Rashford and he even bought his named shirt in the club shop when he saw United play Manchester City in the FA Cup four years ago.
He said: “I love everything he stands for. He is the same age as me and sometimes receives a lot of harsh criticism.
“I admire the way he behaves off the field.
“From my own experiences working with children, I understand that football is more than just football. I see how influential he is to young people and how he uses his platform for a greater good.
“Whether you are a footballer or work in a coffee shop, it is important to be yourself and show people that there is more to this sometimes dark and selfish world.
“Some critics say he should only concentrate on football, but I disagree.
“He knows how tough his upbringing in Manchester was, how he would go home and not eat. So he uses his background and story to help the next generation get through it. That's something I'm passionate about too.
“And his abilities on the field are incredible. I don't think he's reached his peak yet; he can be as good as he wants.
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“So as a person and as a player he is top. I would definitely like to get his shirt and meet him after the game on Sunday.”
Newport fans haven't yet made up a song about the midfielder working in a coffee shop – although they did make a flag for the Wrexham game last weekend which read: 'Who needs Hollywood when we've got Nathan Wood.'
And although Wood has only been a professional for eight months, he is certainly making up for lost time, having already faced Premier League Brentford in the Carabao Cup and now Manchester United.
If the midfielder ultimately doesn't make it past the two-year contract he signed in the summer, he will be forever grateful for weekends like this.
He said: “To become a doctor you have to study for about seven or eight years – but that took me NINETEEN become a professional football player.
“If this contract is all it ends up being, I've crammed in playing against two Premier League clubs – one of them the biggest in the world. But hopefully I can move on because I'm living the dream.”
Or should that be the Americano dream?