EVER WONDERED WHAT it takes to make it as a top Premier League footballer?

Judging by Shane Long’s fine run of recent form, a pre-match bowl of Coco Pops might just do the trick.

The secret to the striker’s success was revealed yesterday by West Brom team-mate Jerome Thomas who admitted that Long’s eye for goal was badly missed while he was sidelined with a knee injury.

The Tipp native marked his return to action with the winner against Bolton on Saturday, and Thomas told reporters that although unorthodox, his quirky pre-match eating habits are obviously not to be scoffed at.

“His hold-up play is phenomenal and he has got incredible energy,” Thomas said yesterday (see Sky Sports). "I think it is down to the Coco Pops."

He won't play a game before eating Coco Pops beforehand. That is where he gets the energy from.

He brings his own box of cereal to the games. That is his ritual before every game but it seems to do the trick.

Let's just hope that Shane remembers to pack a couple of boxes before hitting the Euros next summer...

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