"This sometimes happens at our club with players who don't have the profile of the big stars, and this club has created big stars down the years.
"There are some players who come along and play for your club for ten years and don't get the same profile. Denis Irwin is a case in point, and Steve Bruce never got an England cap, which I thought he should have done.
"It will take time for Darren to get recognised the way some others have done because he doesn't have the profile. He is a quiet, good-living individual whose whole thing is football. He doesn't concern himself about writing in the newspapers, or photoshoots and all that type of thing.
"He is a serious player and has done well at this club because he overcame a couple of bad injuries when he was young, which requires a lot of determination.
"When young players get bad injuries it can depress them, knock them down, hold them back, and you need a lot to get through that."