Picking up on the other end of the line for the latest episode of ‘The Dial Up’, Ben Chilwell talks us through his career to date from the comfort of his own home, offering a glimpse into life behind the scenes as only this candid series can do.
Ben Chilwell is one of the new generation of footballers. Self aware, intelligent and articulate, he’s making waves in the game through a combination of hard work and talent. Cliché, maybe, but he encapsulates both qualities so completely, as evidenced through his rapid rise to first team regular at Leicester and now as England international. And along with this it’s the ability to so easily converse on a more human level that shows what this new breed are about. They have views and they’re not afraid to speak about it. It’s entirely refreshing, as we found out when we spoke with him for the ‘Dial Up’.
Still a relatively young man, Chilwell charts his journey in the game so far with us, from his early beginnings to kicking about with the likes of Dele Alli, Jeff Schlupp and Brendan Galloway around Milton Keynes. From the lows of seeing friends not getting professional contracts to the highs of breaking through in the Leicester City first team, nothing was off the table in this informal but in depth chat, not even sending his mum to fetch his boots from the garage!
We were a really talented age group. We got to the semi finals of the youth tournament, which is the first time Leicester have done that in 30 years. But it’s pretty difficult when it comes to professional contracts. A lot of the boys didn’t get one, and that was my first step when you start to think that it really is a ruthless industry”
I think our whole generation want to be more in touch with the fans, social media and interacting with people. I think the last few months, with the Black Lives Matter campaign, the amount of young players that are talking out about it shows that although it’s a social media oriented generation it’s making us talk more about important matters”
“It’s mental. Imagine having a burger before a game now!”
Listen to the full interview with Ben Chilwell on IGTV.
