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A FORMER Chelsea goalkeeper won his debut for MMA promotion KSW – the latest chapter in his storied sports career. Ricardo Prasel was once the Blues third-choice shot stopper under Jose Mourinho.
Didier Drogba pictured with ex-Chelsea goalkeeper Ricardo Prasel
Michael Ballack pictured with Ricardo Prasel
But an injury at the age of 2022 forced the Brazilian to retire from football and start college, where he began jiu-jitsu.
Soon after, he transitioned to MMA and by 2012 Prasel made his debut, since fighting around the world.
That included Japan and even a run in UFC president Dana White’s Contender Series.
But most recently, Prasel, 31, beat Michal Kita, 41, in round two of his debut for KSW.
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The 6ft 7in ex-keeper started his football career with Athletico Paranaense before joining Clube Atletico Juventus.
He was then signed for Chelsea in 2009 at just the age of 18, proving backup to Petr Cech and Henrique Hilario.
Prasel never played for the first-team but helped the likes of Didier Drogba and Michael Ballack during free-kick practice.
In a 2018 interview with MMA Fighting, he said: “Drogba was f***ing unbelievable, man.
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“I didn’t go to the games with the professionals because I was the third goalkeeper — Cech and Hilario went to the games.
“But I played with them every day, because after training they wanted to practice shootout free kicks, and I had to be there to try to defend it.
“Thirty minutes every day, Drogba and Ballack shooting free kicks. My God, they didn’t miss one. It was incredible.”
The shot stopper was loaned to Belgian side RFC Liege but a hip injury meant he was forced to hang up his boots.
It was only after he returned to Brazil to study that he started training in jiu-jitsu to stay fit.
He revealed: “When I started in jiu-jitsu I had no intention to become a professional.
“I started in college and trained jiu-jitsu for fun, but things started to happen.
“Leaving a sport and get to this level in another one is sensational. My family is proud of me, my father would be proud of me. It’s awesome.”
Prasel has no regrets over his footballing career and admitted success in MMA would top anything available in football.
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He told ESPN in 2019: “If you asked me if I prefer to play on the Brazilian team or fight for the UFC, 100 times I would choose to fight in the UFC.
“MMA is a sport that depends only on me and the adrenaline is much bigger. I love it. I love to fight.
“My time in soccer was very good, but I would not trade that for my fight career.”
Ricardo Prasel has fought all around the worldCredit: Getty
Ricardo Prasel has an MMA record of 12-3Credit: Getty More

THOMAS TUCHEL is refusing to rule Chelsea out of the Premier League title race – despite admitting that it’s almost Mission Impossible.The Blues swept aside Middlesbrough on Saturday to reach the FA Cup semi-final as they look to add to the Club World Cup they won last month.
Thomas Tuchel is refusing to give up in the race for the Premier League titleCredit: AFP
First-half goals from Romelu Lukaku and birthday boy Hakim Ziyech booked them another date at Wembley.
Now they will meet Crystal Palace in the last-four.
That made it 12 wins from 13 for Chelsea, the only blot being the Carabao Cup shoot-out defeat to Liverpool.
And they still maintain a slim hope when it comes to the league.
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Sun;font-size:18px;line-height:1.333;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:0%;font-stretch:normal;display:inline;}.css-i1acvs:hover:not(:disabled){-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}EL CLASICO .css-8h3gc3{margin:0;padding:0;color:rgba(34,37,38,1);-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;font-family:The Sun;font-size:18px;line-height:1.333;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:0%;font-stretch:normal;display:inline;}.css-8h3gc3:hover:not(:disabled){-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}Real Madrid 0 Barcelona 0: Ancelotti’s men look to take step closer to title
Manchester City lead the pack, a point ahead of Liverpool, with the top two still having each other to play.
Chelsea, with a game in hand on both, currently sit 11 points behind the leaders, but even though he knows it is a long shot, 48-year-old Tuchel is refusing to throw in the towel.
He said: “The problem is they are both also on a run for what feels like a long time. 
“It feels like it’s been three years that they’ve both been on a run. And it feels like our 13 games is not enough.
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“We have to be honest, but we will never admit anything before it’s decided. We’ll always push ourselves to the limit.
“We cannot do anything else and we should not get carried away. Two teams took advantage of our problems.
“Full credit to them and they deserve where they are. We need to make sure we catch as many points as possible.” More

CHELSEA are set to pull Reece James out of the England squad due to injury – leaving Luke Shaw as the only specialist full-back.Blues boss Thomas Tuchel revealed the news after his side secured a place in the FA Cup semi final by beating Middlesbrough 2-0 on Saturday.
Reece James looks set to be pulled out of England duty by ChelseaCredit: Rex
James, 22, had been out of action due to a hamstring problem.
He returned for Chelsea’s 4-0 win over Burnley earlier this month but suffered another blow on his comeback.
That led to him missing last week’s win over Newcastle, the Champions League trip to Lille and the triumph at The Riverside.
And afterwards Tuchel claimed that the star, who only has 147 minutes of action under his belt in 2022, should stay at his club to continue his recovery.
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Sun;font-size:18px;line-height:1.333;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:0%;font-stretch:normal;display:inline;}.css-i1acvs:hover:not(:disabled){-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}BLUES NEWS .css-8h3gc3{margin:0;padding:0;color:rgba(34,37,38,1);-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;font-family:The Sun;font-size:18px;line-height:1.333;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:0%;font-stretch:normal;display:inline;}.css-8h3gc3:hover:not(:disabled){-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}Chelsea bidder Nick Candy EXCLUSIVE, Tuchel distances himself from FA Cup plea
He said: “The recommendation is that he does not go.
“He is still in individual training, otherwise we would have brought him to Lille and we would have brought him here for sure.
“There is no doubt about it. He needs one more week of rehabilitation and I think we can provide this much better.
“It is not the job of the national team to do this.”
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Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold has already pulled out of Southgate’s England squad due to injury.
And with Manchester City’s Kyle Walker left out and Newcastle United’s Kieran Trippier injured, that leaves the Three Lions boss with no recognised right-back.
England face Switzerland next Saturday in a friendly at Wembley before returning to the national stadium on Tuesday to take on Ivory Coast. More