Paddy McNair sees his future in Sunderland's midfield.
The Ulsterman is currently recovering from a long-term knee injury.
He told the Sunderland Echo: “I think I'll play midfield going forward, Sunderland signed me as a midfielder, I play there for Northern Ireland as well.
“I know I played a lot at centre-back under Louis van Gaal, that was his opinion of my best position, but the majority of coaches and managers think I'm better in midfield.
“I don't really just want to be just a sitting player, sitting in the centre circle. I want to get about, when I was younger my hero was Steven Gerrard, a brilliant player.
“All the teams in the Premier League have brilliant midfield players so you just learn little bits. Even Burnley last week, Joey Barton, he's completely different to say, Paul Pogba at United, so you just can see those other parts of the games that they do."
Source: tribalfootball.com