Former West Bromwich Albion star Youssouf Mulumbu opens up on English career - 'It went really well, until Tony Pulis arrived'

Trained at Paris Saint-Germain after growing up in Ile-de-France, Youssouf Mulumbu had the chance to play 22 matches with PSG between 2006 and 2009, before leaving his training club to join West Bromwich Albion, where he became a club legend. In this interview with Top Mercato, he looks back on his time in England.

After a loan at Amiens, you left PSG permanently to join West Bromwich Albion, where you became a club legend. What does that feel like?

That is what they say there! I stayed a long time, we managed to keep the club in the Premier League for six years, with players like Peter Odemwingie, Romelu Lukaku, Nicolas Anelka, etc. With over 180 matches played, it went really well, with the supporters, until the last year, with Tony Pulis's arrival, who changed everything in the team's playing style and disrupted everything. I had warned the board that it would not last more than six months and that is what happened.

"With my former teammates, we still talk about the 5-5 in 2013 against Manchester United"

What remains from all those years at the Baggies and in the Premier League?

It is the best league, there is passion, people live football, an elderly person can come to the stadium with their grandchildren, the intensity of matches, of training sessions. The bottom side can beat the top side. Until the final matchday, no team gives up absolutely anything, not a single minute. That is the difference with other leagues. It is extraordinary to experience and their model should be copied in all leagues. It is the best league in the world.

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What is your most memorable moment there?

I would say without hesitation the 5-5 against Manchester United (19th May 2013), because it is Sir Alex Ferguson's last match on the Red Devils' bench. Because we were 3-1 down at half time. We managed to score five goals in a crazy atmosphere, with a boiling crowd. We still talk about it with the players from that match and we still wonder how it could have happened like that.

"I would vote for Peter Odemwingie as number one and Romelu Lukaku as number two"

Which player impressed you most there?

I would vote for Odemwingie as number one and Lukaku as number two. The latter, we could already feel he was going to become the great striker he wanted to be. You could see it through his work, his way of constantly asking for advice from the older players. He had scored 19 goals.

Odemwingie, he had an enormous season, he kept us in the Premier League the first season, with 17 goals. We knew him from Lille, where he was capable of flashes of brilliance. He impressed us greatly. He was very good over time. He really impressed me in that season. I also remember Morgan Amalfitano, who impressed me greatly, with his tricks and his goals against Manchester United. We remained good friends actually.

You then discovered Norwich then Scotland. At Kilmarnock and Celtic. What were the differences with the Premier League? What memories do you keep of them?

Celtic are a big club, they are a bit like the Liverpool of Scotland. I think if they played in the Premier League, they would be in the top five. There are supporters throughout the city, there is a rivalry with Rangers. I was fortunate to get a call from Brendan Rodgers after my good season with Kilmarnock, who told me he was looking for a guy with my profile for dressing room life. Plus, there is European competition. I went without hesitation, but they have a large squad, I played once in Europe and two matches in the league. I did not have the playing time I hoped for and I decided to leave. But it was a huge experience, in a crazy stadium, an extraordinary atmosphere.