Style Obsession, Idolizing Didier Drogba & Friendship with Hamilton
- Published
The Football Interview constitutes an innovative program in which leading personalities from athletics and show business participate with presenter the interviewer for candid and comprehensive dialogues about football.
The program examines mindset and motivation, covering pivotal experiences, career highlights and individual insights. The Football Interview reveals the individual behind the athlete.
Reece James began practicing with Chelsea at six years old and - after developing through the academy and into the senior squad - is now club captain.
James announced himself to the Stamford Bridge faithful in impressive fashion, scoring on his first appearance in a comprehensive win over Grimsby Town in 2019.
Currently twenty-five, his professional achievements to date include making his international bow against the Welsh team in 2020, winning the Champions League with Chelsea in 2021, and being appointed club captain in 2023.
Nevertheless, things have not always gone smoothly, with multiple fitness issues affecting him over recent years.
James sat down with Kelly Somers to talk about his career highs, Thiago Silva's influence, and his relationship with seven-time F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton.
The defender discusses the veteran's influence on his professional journey
Kelly Somers: Initial inquiry: identity, where you're from, and your preferred coffee?
Reece James: I am Reece James, I was raised in Mortlake, near Richmond - I'm sure many will recognize that location. My beverage is a specific coffee type.
Kelly: Has it always been a that particular coffee?
Reece: No, it started with, such as, flavored coffees and stuff.
Kelly: We'll begin by talking football. What significance does soccer hold to you?
Reece: I mean, from childhood, it's kind of my entire focus in education. I wasn't exactly the brightest kid, and I just loved playing football.
The interviewer: Your first recollection of playing? Is this difficult to answer because it was such a significant aspect of your childhood and growing up?
James: No, just because my memory is so bad. My first remembrance was likely, I don't know, going to watch my sibling play. He's my senior by two years than me, and he used to play as well.
The host: It was significant in your household, wasn't it, because your father was so heavily involved? He's a football coach too, right? Share with me a little about that.
The athlete: Well we were three of us growing up. We were completely soccer-obsessed, and he obviously was a coach as well, and we used to train extensively with him.
Kelly: Can you recall many of those sessions? Because I read that as young as the age of four, you practiced outdoors and he was doing drills with you in the yard.
James: Yeah, I recall - the training began early. Thankfully, they paid off for me and my sister [Chelsea and national team forward Lauren James].
The interviewer: Talk to me about your initial club that you represented as a child, its name, and what can you remember?
The defender: My recollection is limited, frankly. It was Kew Park Rangers in Kew. I think I was there for about a year. It was from there that I was scouted for Chelsea.
Kelly: And you weren't a backline player at initially, were you? Talk to me about your role evolution and how that changed...
Reece: I began as a striker, and then subsequently transitioned to the wing, left side, right side, and eventually to central positions, and then eventually at defensive role, and I hated it at that period.
Kelly: What caused your dislike for it?
Reece: Because I always wanted to play midfield. You didn't touch the ball as frequently but one day it just clicked and I became a defender since.
Reece James won the Champions League in that year when his team defeated Man City by one goal in the final in the Portuguese city
Kelly: You mentioned you began as an attacker - who served as your role model?
James: The player I admired was [Didier] Drogba. I was a Chelsea fan during youth and he was the athlete I admired.
Kelly: Identify a pivotal moment in your career - an experience that has shaped you and the professional you have become?
The defender: I'd likely identify going on loan. Transitioning between academy and first-team football is most challenging and that is likely what many athletes transitioning upwards find difficult.
Kelly: You're talking about the club, of course. What made was Wigan the right club for you at the time? It was distant from all you were familiar with in London - what made it successful so well?
James: The first thing is that I played week in week out, which helps. I acquired valuable exposure - I relocated from my companions and relatives and was forced to mature quickly. Participating on a regular schedule helped a lot.
Kelly: Which individual exerted the greatest influence on your career?
The athlete: I'd identify [the experienced Brazilian] the veteran. He is nearly old enough to be my father and has played at the highest level for many years. He consistently attempted to assist me from the moment he joined and still does, presently he is not here [having left Chelsea in that year].
Kelly: In what way would he assist you?
James: These were small pieces of advice off the pitch. During matches, he occasionally see things that I perceived alternatively and try and offer alternative perspectives.
The presenter: It was undoubtedly pleasant to see him this summer [during the tournament]?
Reece: It proved wonderful to reconnect with him. I'm happy that his club performed admirably in the competition [they were defeated in the penultimate round to the champions his team]. It's consistently positive to encounter him.
The interviewer: If you could go back and replay one match in your career, what would you choose?
Reece: If the outcome is going to be the identical - it would be the European Cup decider.
Kelly: Other than victory, what was so special about that night
