Style Obsession, Idolizing Didier Drogba & Friendship with Hamilton
- Released
This Sports Conversation represents an innovative program in which leading personalities from sports and entertainment join host Kelly Somers for frank and detailed discussions about football.
We'll explore mental approach and motivation, discussing defining moments, career highlights and individual insights. The Football Interview reveals the individual beyond the player.
Reece James began training with the London club at six years old and - after developing through the youth system and into the first team - is now club captain.
James announced himself to the Stamford Bridge faithful in style, scoring on his debut in a 7-1 victory over Grimsby Town in September 2019.
Now 25, James' career highlights so far include making his England debut against the Welsh team in the year 2020, claiming the Champions League with Chelsea in 2021, and being appointed team skipper in 2023.
Nevertheless, his journey hasn't been without challenges, with a series of injuries impacting him over the past four seasons.
James sat down with Kelly Somers to discuss his career highs, Thiago Silva's influence, and his friendship with multiple Formula One title winner Lewis Hamilton.
The defender discusses Thiago Silva's impact on his career
The interviewer: Initial inquiry: identity, your origins, and your preferred coffee?
The athlete: The name is Reece James, I was raised in Mortlake, near Richmond - I expect more people will recognize that location. My beverage is a specific coffee type.
The host: Was it consistently a flat white?
James: No, it started with, like, flavored coffees and similar drinks.
Kelly: We'll begin by discussing soccer. What does football mean to you?
The defender: I mean, from a little kid, it was practically all I knew in school. I wasn't the brightest kid, and I just loved playing football.
Kelly: What's your earliest memory of playing? Is this tough to respond to because it represented a significant aspect of your early years and growing up?
Reece: No, simply due to my recollection is so bad. My first remembrance was likely, I don't know, attending matches of my sibling play. He is two years older than me, and he also participated as well.
The host: It was big in your family, correct, because your father was so heavily involved? He's a soccer trainer too, isn't he? Tell me a little about that.
The athlete: Well we were three children during childhood. We were completely soccer-obsessed, and he naturally was a coach as well, and we used to train extensively with him.
Kelly: Do you remember a lot of those training periods? Because I read that as young as the four years old, you were outside and he was doing drills with you in the back garden.
James: Yes, I recall - the training started young. Thankfully, they proved beneficial for myself and my sibling [Chelsea and national team attacker Lauren James].
The interviewer: Tell 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. That was Kew Park Rangers in Kew. I believe I was there for about twelve months. It was from there that talent spotters noticed me for Chelsea.
Kelly: And you weren't a defender at first, correct? Explain about your positional journey and its development...
Reece: I started off as a forward, and then subsequently transitioned to the wing, left wing, right wing, and later to central positions, and then eventually at defensive role, and I disliked it at that period.
The presenter: Why did you hate it?
Reece: Because I always wanted to occupy central positions. There was less involvement with the ball as much but one day everything fell into place and I've been a right-back since.
Reece James won the prestigious trophy in that year when his team defeated Manchester City 1-0 in the final in Porto
The interviewer: You said you began as an attacker - who was your role model?
Reece: The player I admired was [the legendary] Drogba. I grew up as a Chelsea fan growing up and he was the athlete I admired.
Kelly: Identify a turning point in your professional life - a moment that has influenced your development 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 this represents probably what most players making the jump find difficult.
Kelly: You're talking about Wigan, naturally. Why did Wigan become the right club for you at the time? It was distant from everything you were familiar with in the capital - what made it successful so effectively?
Reece: The primary factor is that I featured week in week out, which helps. I gained a lot of experiences - I moved away from my friends and family and had to grow up quickly. Participating on a regular schedule assisted a lot.
The interviewer: Which individual exerted the biggest impact on your professional journey?
The athlete: I'd identify [the experienced Brazilian] the veteran. He is almost old enough to be my father and has played at elite standard for many years. He consistently attempted to assist me from the minute he arrived and continues to, presently he is not here [having left Chelsea in 2024].
The host: How specifically would he help you?
Reece: These were small pieces of advice off the pitch. On the pitch, he would sometimes see things that I perceived differently and attempt and paint a different picture.
The presenter: It was undoubtedly pleasant to meet him this summer [at the Club World Cup]?
The defender: It was great to reconnect with him. I'm happy that his team did well in the tournament [they lost in the semi-finals to eventual winners Chelsea]. It is always good to see him.
Kelly: Were you able to return and experience again a single game in your professional history, which would you pick?
Reece: If the outcome is going to be the same - I'd select the European Cup decider.
Kelly: Other than victory, what was so special about the occasion