KACPER Lopata believes there is no greater place than Southend United for this stage of his career.

The 21-year-old centre-back, who was on loan at Blues from Sheffield United last season, has returned to Roots Hall on a permanent basis.

And he is delighted to be back with the Shrimpers.

“I feel fantastic,” Lopata told the club’s website.

“I loved my time here when I was on loan and I thought this was a great step for me to kickstart my career and start playing football again.

“I don’t think there’s a better place for that right now than here.”

Lopata made 18 appearances for Blues last term before being recalled by the Blades in March.

But the defender did not feature for Sheffield United’s first team on his return and missed the more competitive nature of the National League.

“When you go back to the under 23s and you’re not getting a sniff of first-team football it’s hard,” said Lopata.

“First-team football suits me because you’re playing for points and there’s a lot of passion involved.

“That’s why I’ve come back.

“It’s never straight-forward but I think playing football somewhere you enjoy it, somewhere the fans love you and the gaffer believes in you made my decision for me.

“But I also want to thank the chairman because he went above and beyond to get this deal done.”

And Lopata also emphasised the part the fans had played in him deciding to come back.

“I try not to get too carried away but the fans are a massive part of it,” said Lopata.

“Getting all the support means so much to me and my family.

“They love reading all of it.”

But Lopata means business on his return to Blues and his setting his sights high for the remainder of the season.

“My personal aspiration is to get promoted,” said the defender.

“I don’t want to shy away from it, we’ve got a great team and I think there’s definitely something there.

“As soon as you get a little run going, things become possible very quickly.”

Lopata trained with the Shrimpers today and could be back in the squad for tomorrow’s match against Torquay at Roots Hall.

“I’ve been speaking to my family about making my second debut,” said Lopata.

“I don’t know whether I’ll start tomorrow or not, but it’ll be a special moment and I’m sure the fans will be great like they always are.

“It’s moments like that that I think I’ll cherish forever.”

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>Kevin Maher on Kacper Lopata's return to Blues