Ashton: Playing Career Went Downhill After Real Madrid Debut Tuesday, 1st Jun 2021 15:36 New Blues CEO Mark Ashton admits he wasn’t the greatest goalkeeper in his days as a young player under Town legend Brian Talbot at West Brom and says his career when downhill after a defeat to Real Madrid which led to coaching and then into the boardroom. “I made my debut with Brian Talbot at 17,” Ashton, now 49, recalled. “You’re going to love this. Against Real Madrid. It’s true! They all laugh. "We played in the US in San Francisco against Real Madrid and they had Bebeto, [Rafael] Gordillo etc playing.