Fashion Passion, Idolizing Didier Drogba & Bond with Hamilton

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This Sports Conversation represents a new series in which prominent figures from sports and show business participate with host the interviewer for frank and comprehensive discussions about football.

We'll explore mental approach and drive, discussing defining moments, professional achievements and individual insights. This series reveals the person behind the athlete.

Reece James started training with the London club at six years old and - having progressed through the youth system and into the first team - is now team leader.

James announced himself to Chelsea supporters in style, scoring on his debut in a comprehensive win over Grimsby Town in 2019.

Now 25, his professional achievements so far include making his international bow against Wales in the year 2020, claiming the Champions League with Chelsea in 2021, and being appointed club captain in 2023.

However, his journey hasn't been without challenges, with multiple fitness issues affecting him over the past four seasons.

The athlete spoke with Kelly Somers to talk about his professional peaks, Thiago Silva's influence, and his friendship with seven-time F1 world champion the racing driver.

Kelly Somers: Initial inquiry: name, your origins, and your preferred coffee?

The athlete: The name is Reece James, I was raised in Mortlake, near Richmond - I'm sure many will recognize that area. My beverage is a flat white.

Kelly: Has it always been a flat white?

Reece: Not exactly, I began with, such as, flavored coffees and stuff.

The presenter: We'll begin by discussing soccer. What significance does soccer hold to you?

Reece: I mean, from childhood, it's kind of all I knew in school. I wasn't exactly the brightest kid, and I simply adored playing football.

The interviewer: Your first recollection of playing? Is this difficult to respond to because it represented a significant aspect of your early years and growing up?

James: No, just because my memory is so bad. My earliest memory was probably, I don't know, going to watch my brother play. He's my senior by two years than me, and he also participated as well.

Kelly: It was big in your family, correct, because your father was deeply engaged? He's a soccer trainer too, right? Tell me a bit about that.

The athlete: Well there was three of us growing up. We were all football mad, and he obviously was a trainer as well, and we used to train extensively with him.

Kelly: Do you remember a lot of those training periods? Because I read that starting from the four years old, you practiced outdoors and he was doing exercises with you in the yard.

Reece: Yes, I recall - the training started young. Thankfully, they paid off for myself and my sibling [Chelsea and national team forward Lauren James].

Kelly: Talk to me about your first ever team that you represented as a youngster, its name, and your memories?

The defender: I don't remember much, to be honest. It was Kew Park Rangers in Kew. I think I was there for about twelve months. From that point that I was scouted for the professional club.

Kelly: You didn't start as a defender at initially, correct? Explain about your positional journey and how that changed...

James: I began as a forward, and then eventually transitioned to wide positions, left side, right wing, and eventually to central positions, and then finally at right-back, and I hated it at the time.

Kelly: Why did you hate it?

The athlete: Because I consistently desired to play midfield. You didn't touch the ball as frequently but one day it just clicked and I've been a defender since.

The interviewer: You said you began as an attacker - who was your role model?

Reece: My idol was [Didier] Drogba. I was a supporter during youth and he represented the athlete I looked up to.

Kelly: Can you think of a turning point in your career - a moment that has shaped you and the player you have become?

Reece: I would probably say going on loan. Bridging the gap between academy and senior level is the hardest and this represents probably what most players making the jump find challenging.

The presenter: You're talking about Wigan, naturally. Why did Wigan become the right club for you at that period? It was distant from everything you knew in the capital - what made it successful so effectively?

Reece: The primary factor is that I played week in week out, which proves beneficial. I gained valuable exposure - I relocated from my friends and family and was forced to mature fast. Playing on a regular schedule assisted significantly.

The interviewer: Who has had the greatest influence on your professional journey?

The athlete: I would say [the experienced Brazilian] Thiago Silva. He is nearly sufficiently experienced to be my dad and has competed at the highest level for so long. 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: How specifically would he assist you?

James: These were little messages off the pitch. On the pitch, he occasionally see things that I saw alternatively and try and paint a different picture.

The presenter: It was undoubtedly pleasant to meet him recently [at the Club World Cup]?

Reece: It proved wonderful to reconnect with him. I'm happy that his club did well in the competition [they lost in the penultimate round to the champions his team]. It is always good to see him.

The interviewer: Were you able to go back and replay one match in your professional history, what would you choose?

James: Assuming the result is remains the identical - I'd select the European Cup decider.

Kelly: Other than winning, what was so special about that night