It's been a long time since Cambridge United were considered to be on a level playing field with clubs such as Sheffield Wednesday - but Adam Miller certainly feels we are.

Adam can probably be considered United's most auspicious signing since we dropped out of the Football League in 2005 - having been plying his trade two divisions higher only last season.

Miller was relegated with Gillingham in 2009/10, and following the departure of Mark Stimson as manager he was released from his contract.

There was no shortage of clubs interested in the creative midfielder - so it came as a surprise to many that he chose the R Costings Abbey Stadium above a number of other options.

Some big clubs are rumoured to have been tracking Miller before he signed for the U's - including Wednesday and Bradford City, both of whom have played top-flight football in recent years.

So does the midfielder have any second thoughts over picking non-league football above Hillsborough or Valley Parade?

"I had a few offers from other clubs but I wanted to speak to Martin and Cambridge to weigh up all my options before making my decision, and the way Martin went about things with me was great from the off," he said.

"I spoke to my fiancee about everything once I'd had all the offers in and she just said 'it's clear you want to sign at Cambridge - just do it', so it ended up being a no-brainer.

"It was weird because it started off I was talking to all these other clubs before speaking seriously with Martin, and it ended up that Cambridge was my first choice."

He continued: "There were really good, big clubs involved - and it's obviously flattering to be wanted by them - but in the end you've got to do what feels right for you and that was the main thing for me.

"It's all well and good saying you play for this big club up north or whatever, but I just think if it's not right for you personally, you shouldn't do it - and that's why I haven't."

Miller has experience at all sorts of levels of football, having played for Gillingham in League One and League Two in the last couple of seasons after leaving our former Conference rivals Stevenage Borough in 2008. He also played in what is now the Championship for QPR five years ago.

However, he says he doesn't have delusions of grandeur about his talents, and is eager to get back to playing - even if it is at a lower level than he's been used to in other stages of his career.

"Some people are obsessed by it - League football, League football, League football - but I've played at several levels and that really doesn't carry a lot of weight with me," he explained.

"I haven't got an ego in the sense that I look down on playing in the Conference. I've done that before and I really enjoyed the experience and I can't wait to get started again now.

"Some have a bit of an issue with dropping out of the League but really the difference between League Two and the Conference is virtually nothing these days.

"I believe Cambridge should be a League club and I believe Martin Ling should be a League manager."

The conversation turns to our manager, who clearly has had a big impact on Miller already - and, if truth be told, is probably the main reason the 28-year-old decided to join Cambridge above his other suitors.

"Martin phoned me from his holiday in Cyprus to ask me what I was doing and I told him I was speaking to a few clubs, League clubs," Miller explained.

"He said he'd be interested so to keep him in mind. We had a good chat - not just about football but all sorts of stuff - and he called me again a week later to check up on my progress and we've kept in constant contact since then.

"It's funny, there aren't a lot of honest people left in football these days, but Martin is definitely one of those.

"He was honest and open with me from the start and I really respected that and I wanted to be honest with him, and I was."

Some supporters have already raised concerns over the three-year contract handed to Miller, but the former Gills playmaker says he understands the fans' concerns, and has vowed to repay the faith Martin Ling has shown in him by helping the club to achieve success during his time here.

"You could say I've made sacrifices and one of those could be seen as me dropping out of the League but I'm from a background that keeps me grounded and I don't have an ego about me - even though maybe sometimes I play like that!" he laughed.

"The three-year deal was very important to me - you don't see many of them in football these days unless you get up to a very high level.

"But the club have shown their commitment to me by offering this and it's a two-way street. I've got a family and the security of that longer deal is obviously important, but that's not to say I don't have ambition.

"I want to win promotion in my first season and push on from there. Other clubs like Exeter and Stevenage, who I think are smaller than Cambridge really, have got promoted from the Conference and I think that's very much within the grasp of this club too."

Although Miller will be a relative stranger to many of his new team-mates when they return for the beginning of pre-season training in just under a week's time, one man he does already know is assistant manager and future central midfield partner Paul Carden.

The two men played alongside each other for a month while at the Other Club up the A1 in 2005. And Miller said he cannot wait to play with the combative defensive midfielder - rather than against him.

"He's the kind of player I'll enjoy playing alongside. I've played against him a few times and I can't stand him," he smiled.

"He's an absolute pain! Not only because physically he just won't leave you alone - but he'll also give you a lot of verbals as well.

"He's a little bulldog, and then you chuck in the scouse accent as well and it completes the picture."

Most Cambridge supporters will know exactly where Miller is coming from with his observations of Carden - having seen the former Chester player dominate opposition midfielders on more than one occasion in the past three seasons.

And our new attacking midfielder - who believes he can form a natural partnership with the more defence-minded Carden - claims they can work in tandem to be a real engine room for the U's.

"It's vital that, as a midfielder, you get around the pitch," he said.

"I'm an athletic type who'll get around and it's a bonus to have that in your locker. What will be great about playing with Cards is that I know I won't be doing that on my own, and he'll tell me if I'm not pulling my weight.

"But I enjoy that - I think it's an honest way to play football, it's not personal and I want to be told."

Miller has been forewarned that this United squad is the youngest for some time, with a number of youth team products to be used by Ling during the season in the hope of developing some real gems for the future.

But Miller believes this is a blessing rather than a curse, and is looking forward to feeding off the enthusiasm that comes with training alongside young professionals every day.

"We had a squad at Stevenage with a lot of youngsters and not much experience," he admitted.

"At times maybe we could have done with a bit more experience but the quality of the younger players and the whole atmosphere of the place was lifted by them.

"If you can combine that with a few older players who can give some advice but also involve them in the banter as well it makes for a really good group.

"It's got the makings of a great squad of players."

So what does Miller think he will bring to the table?

"Something off the pitch as well as on it, I hope," he said.

"I'll be lively in the changing room and I think that's important. I worked with the likes of Jim Magilton when I was younger, and he would really give you a hard time if he thought you were not doing your best.

"But at the same time he'd have a laugh with you off the pitch and it was good.

"It may be an old-school way of thinking in football in some ways but I'm a big believer in it.

"Back then I didn't want to hear it but looking back I'm better for the experience."

So let that be a warning to some of the youngsters - Miller intends to use every grain of his experience to grind out performances from everyone within the squad.

It sounds like this year's Cambridge United vintage will be all the better for it, too.

Interview by Alistair Potter

Previous New Player Interviews:

Danny Naisbitt
Danny Wright
Simon Russell
James Jennings
Conal Platt

Cambridge United: YOUR CITY - YOUR CLUB

Current 2010/11 Squad List/numbers:

1: Danny Naisbitt
2: Kevin Roberts
3: James Jennings
4: Josh Coulson
5: Brian Saah
6: David Partridge
7: Simon Russell
8: Adam Miller
9: Danny Wright
10: Daryl Clare
11: Robbie Willmott
12: Rory McAuley
14: Conal Platt
15: Paul Carden
16: TBA (Centre-forward)
17: Sam Ives
18: Daryl Coakley
19: Adam Marriott
20: Jordan Patrick
26: Blaine Hudson
27: Luke Berry
28: Jack Eades
29: Liam Hughes
30: Simon Brown

Cambridge United: YOUR CITY - YOUR CLUB

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