Fashion Passion, Looking Up To Didier Drogba & Friendship with Hamilton

• Published
  Less than an hour ago

This Sports Conversation constitutes a new series where leading personalities from athletics and entertainment participate with presenter the interviewer for candid and detailed dialogues about the beautiful game.

We'll explore mindset and motivation, covering pivotal experiences, career highlights and individual insights. The Football Interview reveals the person behind the athlete.

The Chelsea defender began training with Chelsea at six years old and - having progressed through the youth system and into the senior squad - is now team leader.

James announced himself to Chelsea supporters in style, netting on his first appearance in a comprehensive win over Grimsby Town in 2019.

Now 25, his professional achievements so far include earning his international bow against Wales in the year 2020, winning the European Cup with Chelsea in 2021, and being named team skipper in 2023.

However, his journey hasn't been without challenges, with a series of injuries affecting him over the past four seasons.

James sat down with the interviewer to talk about his professional peaks, the Brazilian's impact, and his friendship with seven-time F1 world champion the racing driver.

The interviewer: Initial inquiry: identity, your origins, and your preferred coffee?

The athlete: The name is Reece James, I grew up in Mortlake, near Richmond - I'm sure more people will recognize that location. My coffee is a specific coffee type.

Kelly: Has it always been a that particular coffee?

James: No, it started with, like, vanilla lattes and stuff.

The presenter: Let's start by discussing soccer. What does football mean to you?

The defender: Essentially, from childhood, it was practically all I knew in school. I wasn't exactly the most academic student, and I just loved playing football.

Kelly: Your first recollection of participating? Is this difficult to respond to because it was such a significant aspect of your early years and development?

James: No, just because my recollection is so bad. My earliest memory was probably, unsure, going to watch my brother compete. He's my senior by two years than me, and he also participated as well.

Kelly: It was big in your family, wasn't it, because your dad was deeply engaged? He is a football coach too, right? Tell me a little about that.

Reece: Well there was three of us growing up. It was completely soccer-obsessed, and he obviously was a coach as well, and we frequently practiced extensively with him.

Kelly: Do you remember many of those sessions? Since I read that as young as the age of four, you were outside and he conducted exercises with you in the yard.

Reece: Yes, I remember - the training began early. Thankfully, they proved beneficial for me and my sister [the club and national team forward Lauren James].

Kelly: Tell me about your initial club that you played for as a youngster, its name, and what can you remember?

Reece: I don't remember much, to be honest. That was the local team in the area. I believe I played for about a year. From that point that I was scouted for the professional club.

Kelly: You didn't start as a backline player at initially, were you? Talk to me about your role evolution and how that changed...

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

Kelly: What caused your dislike for it?

The athlete: Because I always wanted to play midfield. You didn't touch the football as much but one day everything fell into place and I became a defender since.

Kelly: You said you began as an attacker - who served as your idol?

James: The player I admired was [the legendary] Drogba. I grew up as a supporter during youth and he was the player I admired.

The host: Identify a pivotal moment in your career - an experience that has shaped you and the professional you have evolved into?

Reece: I would probably say going on loan. Bridging the gap between youth and first-team football is the hardest and this represents likely what most players making the jump find challenging.

The presenter: You're talking about the club, of course. What made did Wigan become the right club for you at that period? The location was miles away from all you were familiar with in the capital - why did it work so well?

Reece: The primary factor is that I played week in week out, which helps. I acquired a lot of experiences - I moved away from my friends and relatives and had to mature quickly. Participating on a regular schedule helped a lot.

Kelly: Which individual exerted the biggest impact on your career?

The athlete: I would say [Brazil defender] Thiago Silva. He's almost sufficiently experienced to be my father and has played at the highest level for many years. He always tried to assist me from the minute he arrived and still does, even now he is departed [having left Chelsea in 2024].

Kelly: In what way would he assist you?

James: These were small pieces of advice off the pitch. During matches, he occasionally observe situations that I saw alternatively and try and offer alternative perspectives.

The presenter: It must have been nice to meet him recently [during the tournament]?

Reece: It proved great to reconnect with him. I'm pleased that his club did well in the competition [they were defeated in the penultimate round to the champions his team]. It's always good to encounter him.

Kelly: If you could go back and replay a single game in your career, which would you pick?

James: Assuming the result is going to be the identical - I'd select the Champions League [final].

The host: Other than winning, what made it exceptional about the occasion