Style Obsession, Looking Up To Didier Drogba & Bond with Hamilton
- Published
This Sports Conversation represents a new series where leading personalities from sports and show business join host the interviewer for frank and comprehensive dialogues about the beautiful game.
We'll explore mental approach and drive, discussing pivotal experiences, professional achievements and personal reflections. The Football Interview uncovers the person beyond the player.
The Chelsea defender started practicing with the London club at six years old and - after developing through the academy and into the senior squad - is now team leader.
James announced himself to Chelsea supporters in impressive fashion, scoring on his debut in a 7-1 victory over the opposition in September 2019.
Currently twenty-five, his professional achievements so far include earning his England debut against the Welsh team in the year 2020, claiming the European Cup with Chelsea in 2021, and being named team skipper in 2023.
However, things have not always gone smoothly, with multiple fitness issues impacting him over the past four seasons.
James sat down with the interviewer to discuss his professional peaks, Thiago Silva's influence, and his friendship with seven-time F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton.
'He's nearly old enough to be my dad' - Reece James reveals the veteran's influence on his career
The interviewer: First question: identity, your origins, and what's your coffee order?
The athlete: The name is Reece James, I was raised in Mortlake, near Richmond - I expect more people will recognize that location. My coffee is a specific coffee type.
The host: Has it always been a flat white?
James: Not exactly, I began with, like, vanilla lattes and stuff.
The presenter: We'll begin by talking football. What does football mean to you?
The defender: Essentially, from childhood, it's kind of my entire focus in education. I wasn't the most academic student, and I simply adored the sport.
Kelly: What's your earliest memory of playing? Is this difficult to respond to because it represented a big part of your early years and growing up?
James: Not particularly, just because my recollection is quite poor. My first remembrance was probably, I don't know, going to watch my sibling play. He's two years older than me, and he used to play as well.
Kelly: It was significant in your family, correct, because your father was deeply engaged? He is a soccer trainer too, isn't he? Share with me a little about that.
Reece: Well we were three children during childhood. It was all football mad, and he obviously was a trainer as well, and we frequently practiced a lot with him.
Kelly: Do you remember a lot of those training periods? Since I learned that starting from the age of four, you were outside and he was doing drills with you in the back garden.
Reece: Yes, I remember - the training started young. Thankfully, they paid off for me and my sibling [the club and national team attacker Lauren James].
Kelly: Talk to me about your first ever team that you played for as a child, its name, and what can you remember?
The defender: My recollection is limited, to be honest. It was Kew Park Rangers in the area. I think I played for about twelve months. It was from there that I was scouted for Chelsea.
Kelly: And you weren't a defender at initially, were you? Talk to me about your positional journey and how that changed...
James: I began as a striker, and then subsequently transitioned to wide positions, left wing, right side, and eventually to midfield, and then finally at defensive role, and I disliked it at that period.
Kelly: Why did you hate it?
The athlete: Because I always wanted to play midfield. You didn't touch the football as much but one day it just clicked and I became a right-back since.
Reece James won the prestigious trophy in 2021 when his team defeated Man City 1-0 in the championship match in the Portuguese city
The interviewer: You mentioned you began as a forward - who was your role model?
James: The player I admired was [Didier] Drogba. I grew up as a Chelsea fan growing up and he was the athlete I admired.
The host: Identify a pivotal moment in your career - an experience that has influenced your development and the player you have become?
Reece: I'd likely identify the loan spell. Bridging the gap between youth and first-team football is most challenging and this represents probably what many athletes making the jump find difficult.
The presenter: You're referring to Wigan, naturally. What made did Wigan become the right club for you at that period? The location was miles away from everything you knew in the capital - what made it successful so effectively?
James: The primary factor is that I played week in week out, which proves beneficial. I gained a lot of experiences - I moved away from my companions and family and was forced to mature quickly. Playing on a regular schedule assisted significantly.
The interviewer: Who has had the biggest impact on your career?
Reece: I would say [the experienced Brazilian] Thiago Silva. He is nearly sufficiently experienced to be my father and has competed at elite standard for many years. He consistently attempted to help me from the moment he arrived and continues to, presently he is departed [having left Chelsea in that year].
The host: How specifically would he assist you?
Reece: These were small pieces of advice off the pitch. On the pitch, he would sometimes see things that I perceived alternatively and try and offer alternative perspectives.
The presenter: It was undoubtedly pleasant to see him this summer [at the Club World Cup]?
The defender: It proved great to see him again. I'm happy that his team performed admirably in the competition [they were defeated in the semi-finals to eventual winners his team]. It's always good to see him.
The interviewer: If you could go back and replay one match in your professional history, which would you pick?
Reece: If the outcome is remains the same - it would be the Champions League [final].
The host: Besides victory, what was so special about the occasion
