On the eve of the end of last summer’s transfer window, Dan Udoh received a call from a number he didn’t recognize.

He initially missed it but saved the number on WhatsApp. Profile pictures definitely reveal something, don’t they?

No such luck.

Then the phone rang again. This time he answered. “Hi Dan, it’s Paul,” the caller said.

“I was like, ‘Who is Paul?'” Udoh recalled, laughing as he spoke to others sky sports.

“It turned out to be Paul Scholes! I’m starstruck because I grew up a Manchester United fan.

“Having a hero you respect and watch grow up call you and tell you to join his team…that’s enough for me!”

On deadline day, September 1, Udoh signed a two-year contract to join Salford from Wycombe for an undisclosed fee.

The situation was hair-trigger as the chairman wanted to sign a replacement before sanctioning his departure. The drama of it all is captured In the This Is Salford episode below”, posted on the club’s official YouTube channel.

Udo said then, and still says now, that the club’s ambition was one of the driving factors in his pursuit of a move. But equally important was the opportunity to return north after a season in Buckinghamshire.

“I’m from north-west London but football can take you anywhere,” he said.

“I lived in Telford, played for Telford and Shrewsbury for six or seven years, got married there, had my little boy there and bought our house there.

“My wife’s family are from Widnes, which is 20 minutes to half an hour’s drive from Warrington where we live, and half an hour from Salford, so it made sense.

“I’m a big believer in God and I’ve always thought God plans everything the way He wants. You just have to follow the rules.”

It’s often said in football that if a player is happy and settled off the pitch, half the battle is won – and a move north certainly seems to be working wonders for Udoh.

His performance last season wasn’t terrible by any means. In 41 games, he scored nine goals and provided three assists, helping Wycombe into the Sky Bet League One play-offs.

But this season – starting with six league games at Wycombe – the 29-year-old has scored eight goals and provided nine assists in 32 appearances in all competitions.

“I hope the target number is higher!” he said.

“Assisting has never been a thing on my mind but it’s always good to be involved because scoring goals is a big part now, isn’t it? Being involved in scoring goals is my main goal and that ultimately wins games.”

“If I get tagged that day or don’t score, then I can give the ball to other teammates. I’m not a selfish player. If someone is in a better position than me and I think it’s good for the team, I will always give the ball to them and I hope they will give the ball to me.”

Working with Carl Robinson was very rewarding.

“I always like it when a manager is brutally honest with me,” Udoh added.

“He truly meant it and told me what I needed to hear at the right time.

“I’ve been in situations before where you don’t get enough information from the manager and you don’t know where you stand, but with him I know where I stand most games, most weeks and that helps me know what he wants me to do.

“He has a structure about how he wants us to defend and how he wants us to attack. But at the top of the pitch he leaves a lot of freedom for the forwards to find goals.

“As an older, more experienced player—I guess I wouldn’t say that!—he’s allowed me to bring what I had in the past into the present and it’s bearing fruit.”

Class 92 also has great influence.

“Scholes is here almost all the time and sometimes he trains with us.

“The week before, he told us he couldn’t get in properly because he didn’t have boots on. But when he played, he didn’t concede a single goal, so there wasn’t really any need to get in! The level of player he is now is still insane.”

“We can go to him and ask him what he thinks about the game because he’s there most of the time.

“The defenders had a meeting with Gary Neville a few weeks ago and the team has been getting more clean sheets recently. Things like this help the team improve.”

Udoh made 20 appearances for Crewe in the 2015/16 and 2016/17 seasons, but it was not until the 2019/20 season that he started playing regularly in the Sky Bet EFL.

Now, he only needs two more goals to move into 50th place in the top four divisions.

He still pinches himself from time to time.

“I never thought I would become a professional footballer playing in the EFL. This is always the goal, but sometimes it seems far away.

“I’ve been a fish and chip delivery driver, I’ve worked in a chicken factory, I’ve been a paramedic… I’ve had a lot of jobs.

“But I come from a hard-working family, so from a young age our parents always told us that whatever you do – whether you’re a bin man, a janitor or whatever – do it to the best of your ability. That’s what I try to do in football and in life.

“To be able to say I’ve played almost 250 league games is a testament to all the people who believed in me and gave me a chance, as well as the managers I’ve worked with in the past who always told me to believe in myself and push myself as hard as I can.

“I have a never-say-die mentality, keep working hard – you never know what might happen.”

Unsurprisingly, he wants to “strike gold” and help Salford win the League Two title.

“For me, a good season is promotion. I came here to win and that’s what I want to do,” Udoh added.

“Even if – God forbid, touch wood – I don’t score between now and the end of the season and we get promoted, I’ll be very happy about that.”

Watch Sky Bet League 2 Salford v Newport live on Sky Sports+ on Tuesday 17 February; starts at 7.45pm