A former Arsenal footballing legend has visited Altrincham College for a careers talk to inspire youngsters to "kickstart" their careers.

Ian Wright, the footballer turned pundit, teamed up with Barclays to chat with young people to help them see their core transferrable skills before they enter the workforce.

Sixth form students at Altrincham College heard Wright's own story about changing careers in the workshop, which was brought by Barclays LifeSkills programme.

The event took place as research from LifeSkills suggests that almost half of young people (45 per cent) do not feel confident speaking about themselves in job interviews, with many admitting to not recognising what they can offer potential employers.

Up to 46 per cent said in the study that a clearer understanding of what their core transferable skills are would have helped them with their nerves.

Of those surveyed, nine out of 10 said that they participate in extracurricular activities such as sports, theatre groups, computer gaming or creating content for social media, which all lend themselves to qualities such as leadership, aiming high, problem solving, communication, adaptability, resilience, and creativity.

However, despite this, more than 23 per cent do not see them as desirable to employers, which is where Barclays LifeSkills said it can help.

Kirstie Mackey OBE, head of LifeSkills at Barclays, said: “Our research shows a real need for better understanding around skillset.

"Feedback from the ‘Kickstart Your Career’ day has shown how important workshops like these are in proving to young people that they already have what they need to be successful.

“Our aim has been to empower the future workforce to feel assured in their skills when starting out in their careers, which we’re glad to have been successful in throughout the last 10 years.

"In an ever-changing job market, jobseekers need to be resilient and adaptable, seeing where their skills lie to ensure they’re placing their best foot forward.”

Barclays football ambassador Wright added: “I got rejected a lot when I was trying to get my break into professional football.

"It does knock your confidence, but it also makes you realise how hard you have to work to make it as a professional, and that stays with you no matter what your job is.

“As a player, the pressure to be on top form and to score in every game was always there, but it’s what we trained for, and what our coaches and managers prepared us to do every time we went out on the training pitch.

"I knew how important it was to aim high and perform well, but we were a team, too, so we also wanted to do well for each other.

“Then when I retired from playing, I went straight into TV. But I knew nothing about broadcasting.

"I had to adapt quickly and surround myself with people who knew a lot more than I did and who were prepared to help me, like my coaches always had.

"Preparation was key for me, and it still is now."