Style Obsession, Looking Up To Drogba & Bond with Hamilton

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The Football Interview constitutes a new series in which leading personalities from athletics and entertainment join host the interviewer for frank and comprehensive dialogues about football.

We'll explore mental approach and drive, discussing pivotal experiences, career highlights and individual insights. The Football Interview uncovers the person beyond the player.

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

James announced himself to the Stamford Bridge faithful in style, netting on his first appearance in a 7-1 victory over the opposition in 2019.

Currently twenty-five, his professional achievements to date include making his international bow against Wales in 2020, winning the Champions League with his club in 2021, and being appointed club captain in 2023.

However, things have not always gone smoothly, with a series of injuries affecting him over the past four seasons.

The athlete spoke with the interviewer to discuss his career highs, the Brazilian's impact, and his relationship with seven-time F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton.

The interviewer: First question: name, your origins, and your preferred coffee?

Reece James: The name is Reece James, I was raised in the area, 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: No, I began with, such as, vanilla lattes and stuff.

Kelly: We'll begin by discussing soccer. What does football mean to you?

The defender: Essentially, from childhood, it's kind of all I knew in school. I wasn't exactly the brightest kid, and I simply adored the sport.

The interviewer: Your first recollection of playing? Is this tough 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 likely, unsure, going to watch my sibling compete. He's my senior by two years than me, and he used to play as well.

Kelly: It was big in your household, wasn't it, because your father was deeply engaged? He's a football coach too, isn't he? Share with me a little about that.

The athlete: So there was three of us growing up. It was completely soccer-obsessed, and he naturally was a coach as well, and we used to train a lot with him.

Kelly: Do you remember a lot of those sessions? Since I read that starting from the age of four, you practiced outdoors and he was doing drills with you in the yard.

James: Yes, I recall - the drills began early. Fortunately, they proved beneficial for me and my sibling [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?

Reece: I don't remember much, frankly. That was Kew Park Rangers in Kew. I think I was there for about twelve months. It was from there that talent spotters noticed me for the professional club.

Kelly: You didn't start as a backline player at initially, correct? Explain about your positional journey and its development...

Reece: I began as a forward, and then subsequently moved to the wing, left wing, right wing, and eventually to central positions, and then eventually at right-back, and I hated it at the time.

The presenter: What caused your dislike for it?

Reece: Since I always wanted to occupy central positions. There was less involvement with the ball as much but eventually it just clicked and I became a right-back since.

The interviewer: You said 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 represented the player I admired.

Kelly: Can you think of a pivotal moment in your professional life - an experience that has shaped you and the professional you have evolved into?

The defender: I would probably say the loan spell. Bridging the gap between academy and senior level is most challenging and that is likely what many athletes transitioning upwards find difficult.

The presenter: You're referring to Wigan, of course. What made did Wigan become the right club for you at that period? It was distant from all you knew in the capital - why did it work so well?

James: The first thing is that I featured consistently, which helps. I acquired valuable exposure - I moved away from my friends and family and was forced to grow up fast. Playing on a consistent basis assisted significantly.

Kelly: Who has had the greatest influence on your career?

Reece: I'd identify [Brazil defender] the veteran. He's almost sufficiently experienced to be my father and has played at elite standard for many years. He always tried to help me from the moment he joined and continues to, even now he is not here [having left Chelsea in that year].

The host: In what way would he help you?

James: It was little messages away from games. During matches, he occasionally see things that I saw alternatively and try and paint a different picture.

Kelly: It must have been pleasant to meet him this summer [at the Club World Cup]?

Reece: It proved great to see him again. I'm pleased that his club performed admirably in the tournament [they lost in the penultimate round to the champions Chelsea]. It is consistently positive to encounter him.

The interviewer: If you could return and replay one match in your career, what would you choose?

James: If the outcome is remains the identical - it would be the European Cup decider.

Kelly: Other than winning, what made it exceptional about that night