Shrewsbury Town full back Joe Riley born to be mild

But not Joe Riley, who turned 25 yesterday and celebrated with a meal at his favourite 'Peri Peri' chicken restaurant with his partner.

Typically withdrawn, the marauding full-back admitted he even enjoys Nando's famously mild 'plain' sauce – far from the spicy efforts Premier League superstars would brag about.

Riley is quiet and unassuming. For a young man who blazed onto the scene as a Bolton Wanderers youngster – even making a couple of Premier League appearances – he is very grounded and removed from the limelight.

Indeed, even his Twitter biography contains just a single word: 'Private'.

"No – there's just been happy birthday wishes which is nice," he said on the birthday reactions from his team-mates.

"I had to bring the cakes in which is a bit of a pocket spender – Krispy Kremes!"

Aside from the expense of his outlay on doughnuts, Riley is upbeat and happy to be back in the fold after a troublesome knee injury to the same joint hit by a damaged anterior cruciate ligament that held back his Bolton progress. Riley added: "I've been struggling for the last few weeks with my knee injury which has been doing my head in – if I put it as nicely as I can.

"I've only been able to train on Friday and get through a game on Saturday, it's not been ideal.

"I had an injection before Bradford, so hopefully that could be the end of it. I've trained today, done a bit on Tuesday so hopefully that's the end of it.

"It's the knee that I was struggling with a couple of years ago, but I've never had any trouble with it since.

"Since I've come here, I think it was before Bury when I started struggling and that was when I'd come into good form. But I'm just trying to come through it at the minute and do the best job I can."

Despite turning 25, the Salford-born former Bury man describes himself as 'one of the younger lads'.

That particular response was given while dissecting the week since Micky Mellon departed Greenhous Meadow.

Mellon was a known admirer of Riley.

The right-back scored a belter against Salop and Sheffield United during his Bury days – and those goals were just one of the reasons Mellon pounced.

"It's something that a couple of younger lads – me especially – have only dealt with once where managers have gone," he said.

"It's obviously not nice, especially when he brings you to the club, because you want to work with him for as long as you can.

"He rates you highly, where a new guy could come in and disagree – everyone's got their opinion in football.

"Fans, managers and players –- hopefully everyone can work hard and knuckle down."

Riley almost winces in recollection of his stooped header that flew inches past the post in the dying moments at Bradford last week.

He has already scored this season – a fine strike in victory at Oldham.

He smiled: "They probably know about me, but I won't say much. I'll try to surprise them."

They always say watch out for the quiet ones.