Timm Klose has had to risk his international future to stay and fight Norwich City's Championship promotion cause.
The central defender was urged to leave Carrow Road by his Swiss national manager following the Canaries' Premier League relegation, and Klose's decision to stay in Norfolk may harm his chances of featuring in his country's World Cup qualifying campaign.
'The national coach wanted me to go to a higher league but sometimes you can't change that and you must think about all the different aspects in the background,' he said. 'I had a talk with him in the last international break, and it is not an easy decision for me to decide. He told me if I am in the second division somewhere he is not quite sure he wants to select me anymore because there is quite a few players who play in the first division in France or even in Switzerland and he thinks that is better. That is just the way he thinks. I try to give him a reason to select me again. I never doubted my decision. I am playing games a lot and that is the most important thing for a footballer. It is fantastic.'
Klose admits his first brush with the Championship was a culture shock but the Norwich City defender is ready for a scrap against Burton this weekend, although the Swiss international is taking nothing for granted against the newly-promoted Brewers.
'I need longer rests for my head because I have to do a lot of heading in the games,' he said. 'The difference is you have to fight more in the Championship because some teams might not have the quality and they try to play with long balls. You have to stand up and show you can run and fight as good as they do. Of course the manager and the other players told me what to expect but when you win 4-1 very easily in the first game it was only the second game when you see how it really is.
'Against Ipswich I never played against a striker like this before (Daryl Murphy) but that is very good for me so I can improve my game, I can get better and show what it takes to be a good defender in this league.
'After the first few games I had a talk with the gaffer and he told me not to change the way I play but to match what I might face. Maybe I expected we could go out there and play like a Premier League team but that is not going to happen in this league. You have to be more physical to win the games.'
Klose is an ever-present for the league campaign, but Alex Neil has opted to play both Ryan Bennett and Russell Martin alongside him.
'First of all I have to bring my performance to stay in the team. It is the same with the other lads,' he said. 'Ryan did a great job, Russell came in after the international break and did a fantastic job. We have won every game since he came back in. Sometimes it is hard for the gaffer to decide who plays. We have so many quality players who are hungry to play.
'If you go into a game as a favourite you always have to be wary of slipping up. Burton play good football, not maybe in terms of technical skills, but they can run and fight and we have to match that and with our quality we can bring them down. Burton is a good team, I watched some highlights. It will be a very hard game because they know how to run, they know how to fight.'
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