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      John Terry’s dad was furious he snubbed Man Utd for Chelsea so refused to join him on pitch as he signed first deal

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      JOHN TERRY once revealed his dad was so furious he snubbed Manchester United for Chelsea that he refused to join him on the pitch as he signed his first contract.Terry, who had been playing for West Ham at youth level up until the age of 14, had the choice of joining the Blues, United or Arsenal.
      Jonh Terry’s dad was so furious he snubbed Man Utd for Chelsea he refused to join his son on the pitch as he signed his first contract
      But after falling in love with Chelsea, the legendary defender defied his dad’s wishes and refused a United contract.
      And the former Aston Villa assistant manager Terry told the Footballer’s Guide to Football podcast in June 2020: “My dad never wanted me to sign for Chelsea.
      “Actually, on the pitch of me signing my schoolboy form at the club, my dad refused to go on the pitch with me.
      “I’m in the tunnel, the players are coming off the pitch and I’m waiting in the tunnel, Glenn Hoddle goes past and my dad’s going, ‘You’re not signing for this football club, we should sign for Man United’.
      “Again, me being me at the time I’m going, ‘I’m 100 per cent I’m signing here, if you don’t come out with me I’m going out to sign’.
      “And you needed a parent, so my mum said she would come and sign it with me, my dad’s going mad at my mum, ‘No you wont’.
      My dad never wanted me to sign for Chelsea. Actually, on the pitch of me signing my schoolboy form at the club, my dad refused to go on the pitch with me.John Terry

      “There’s a picture of my mum and Graham Rix signing my contract, but my dad refused and absolutely kicked off that night. Again, me being the character I was, I knew Chelsea was right for me.
      “One night that was probably supposed to be one of the best nights of my life turned out to be a tough one for a young 14-year-old to be honest.”
      Terry’s instinct to sign for Chelsea paid off, as he went on to win five Premier League titles and FA Cup’s as well as lifting the Champions League in 2012 before leaving the club in 2017.
      But the legendary centre-back revealed he did come close to joining rivals United, and even visited the club several times over a year with David Beckham.
      Terry said: “I actually went up to Man United for a year, so I was kind of travelling up in school holidays, I went up with David Beckham when he signed his first pro contract.
      “We went up in the car together, I was there on a two-week training camp.
      “I went up, stayed up for a couple weeks every school holiday really on my own, which was tough to be fair, being away from home.
      “Then I had the option between Arsenal, Chelsea and Man United and to be fair all of them went above and beyond.
      “The moment I walked into Chelsea, it just felt right, I know that’s going to sound really bizarre.”
      ⚽ Read our Football live blog for the very latest news from around the grounds
      Terry won five Premier League titles before leaving Chelsea in 2017Credit: PA:Press Association
      Ray Parlour believes John Terry needs someone to take a gamble on him as a manager More

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      ‘Brilliant, under-appreciated’ Chelsea star Mason Mount would be raved about if he was French or Italian, claims Johnson

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      MASON MOUNT is undervalued by football pundits and fans because he is not French or Italian, according to Glen Johnson.A quiet Euro 2020, impacted by a period of coronavirus isolation, meant the Chelsea and England midfielder was not one of the star names of the summer.
      Mason Mount will be back in action for Chelsea this weekendCredit: Getty
      And he is yet to get up and running in the new season following a short spell out with injury, which he has now overcome.
      But Mount has been a genuine breakout hit from the Chelsea academy with over 100 games and plenty of goals under his belt.
      Former Blues defender Johnson has claimed that many in the game do not ‘appreciate’ his abilities.
      He told Betting Expert: “[Mount] is under-appreciated, he’s brilliant.
      “If he was French or Italian, everyone would be raving about him.
      “He’s playing with big names, superstars and for me, some of his performances do go unmissed.

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      “He’s an all-round midfielder and should be starting every week.”
      Mount, 22, is set to return for Chelsea against Southampton on Saturday.
      Thomas Tuchel is looking forward to having one of his first-teamers back although N’Golo Kante, Reece James and Christian Pulisic will miss out.
      The coach confirmed on Friday: “Mason is back.

      “It was not a long injury and we’re happy that he’s back.
      “We need to be careful. He had a rough time at Tottenham.
      “We of course missed Mason. The whole team missed Kante and Mason, of course that’s why he plays. Reece James too? Yes of course. Pulisic? Of course.
      “We have a squad and the duty, for me as a coach, to find a solution. It is possible to win games with Mason Mount.”

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      Glen Johnson would like to see Mount get more recognitionCredit: Pacemaker Press
      England manager Southgate says Chelsea’s Mount and James are likely to play against Southampton More

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      Chelsea boss Tuchel dropped a tactical clanger in the defeat against Man City – does he stick or twist at Juventus?

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      THOMAS TUCHEL’S tactics will come under the spotlight like never before when Chelsea look to bounce back from Saturday’s deflating defeat at home to Manchester City.The debate has not been about whether he made a mistake with his team selection – that is accepted truth in any pub courtroom after his team failed to produce a single shot on target.

      But the question now is will the coach who claims communication is king persevere and try to press home the message or be brave enough to write off the pairing of Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner up front?
      Much will depend on whether Mason Mount is fit enough to play at Juventus in Chelsea’s toughest game of their Champions League group stage.
      His absence on Saturday was a big blow in a key game but Tuchel tried to be too clever and used it to change his entire approach to the game instead of a simple swap of Mount for Kai Havertz.
      The result was the supposed 3-5-2 that became 5-3-2 as Chelsea’s defence fought a desperate rearguard action under waves of City attacks, cutting off the supply lines to Lukaku and Werner.
      Playing in Turin will not be nearly as tough as facing the Premier League champions but it will still be a big moment in Tuchel’s reign.
      Managers earn their money when things go wrong. So far at Chelsea not much has.

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      The £97.5million signing of Lukaku was the immediate trigger that gave Chelsea the focal point in front of goal so desperately needed and his four goals since returning to the club prove that.
      But Lukaku has thrived on having two wide men on either side of him so far this season – a combination of Mount, Havertz or Hakim Ziyech.
      Wing-backs Reece James and Marcos Alonso also offer support in those areas that allows Lukaku to operate in and around the box where he is so devastating.
      If Mount does not pass the fitness test for Turin then Havertz must start.

      That was the gamble Tuchel took and lost at the weekend. Havertz operates well on the flanks or either in the number ten role, picking up balls from the deeper-lying midfielders to probe and penetrate.
      Havertz is going from strength to strength since his initial struggles when joining Chelsea last season.
      Havertz or Mount must be in every starting line up when possible if Tuchel wants to live up to his philosophy of attacking football and sticking to his belief that Chelsea is a club about winning at all costs.
      Last weekend the Chelsea fans got neither.

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      Thomas Tuchel reacts to Chelsea’s 1-0 loss to Manchester City More

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      Man Utd and Chelsea monitoring Franck Kessie transfer situation with AC Milan midfielder ‘wanting Prem switch’

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      MANCHESTER UNITED are one of several Premier League teams keeping an eye on AC Milan star Franck Kessie, according to reports.Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal, Tottenham and Everton are all said to be in the mix for the Ivorian following his strong form for the Italian club.
      Franck Kessie is being tracked by multiple Premier League teamsCredit: AFP
      Kessie, 24, is out of contract at the end of the season, his fifth at the San Siro.
      English clubs will therefore be able to negotiate a pre-agreement for a summer free transfer as soon as January.
      As reported by 90min, United and many Prem rivals have asked Kessie’s agent to be kept in the loop if the player decides to hear out offers.
      Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich are also named in the report but the midfielder is said to prefer a move to England, which is seen as a better fit for his playing style.
      But Milan still have a couple of months to persuade him to stay.
      Talks over a new contract are said to be at a standstill following Kessie’s rejection of a new deal.

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      Reports in Italy detail Milan’s proposal to more than double his current £35,000 weekly wage to over £80,000-a-week.
      That would then rise to £105,000-a-week in the final two years of the proposed five-year contract, according to Tuttosport.
      However, Kessie is said to be seeking as much as £115,000-a-week as a starting salary, following his role in Milan’s resurgence over the past year.
      A decision will reportedly be made by the former Atalanta star in January over whether he will stick with the Rossoneri or head for pastures new.
      Should he choose to move on, Milan are described by Corriere dello Sport as increasingly confident that the emerging Sandro Tonali will step up as the key man in their midfield.

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      Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel reveals he expected Tottenham striker Harry Kane to seal Man City transfer in the summer

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      CHELSEA manager Thomas Tuchel admits he thought Tottenham superstar Harry Kane would join Manchester City in the summer.Kane announced his desire to leave Spurs in May when City tried to capitalise, but they were unable to meet the asking price.
      Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel thought Harry Kane would join Manchester CityCredit: Getty
      Tottenham star Harry Kane stayed despite Manchester City’s intense interest
      Reports suggested the Blues were also linked with the England captain but Tuchel insists that wasn’t the case and Romelu Lukaku was always his top target.
      Speaking about Kane’s proposed move to Man City, the German manager admitted: “I thought that this would happen.”
      “We never had a list with his name on it and I never went to Marina Granovskaia to tell her to buy him.
      “But the club sorted out the situation. There are many people around players, their agents and advisors and people in between and we had some information from these people.
      “But it was never that close that we had to experience the rivalry [between Tottenham and Chelsea].
      “We know about the rivalry but I had a feeling that it was never that far.”
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      Tuchel, though, insists that he wouldn’t have feared City any more with Kane in their squad during the Premier League title chase.
      But the former Borussia Dortmund boss admits he was pleased with the 28-year-old proving to be a one-club man.
      Tuchel added: “No, I was not scared, but if it would have happened, I would have been very interested in how maybe it would have changed Manchester City’s style of playing.
      “We are not afraid of anyone. We accept any team and Manchester City, Man United and Liverpool, they are the teams strong like no other in this league and they have strong squads.
      “These are the guys with whom we want to compete and it’s normal that they fight for the best players and I thought this is maybe going to happen.

      “On one side I was happy that he stayed because it is also nice that it exists in football that players play for one club only.
      “Harry Kane is Tottenham and even for me – I have absolutely nothing to do with Tottenham, I have never worked for them – when I think about Tottenham in the last decade you think about Harry Kane and this is very nice.
      “Like you think about [Lionel] Messi and straight away you think about Barcelona and it is very hard to think that he plays for another club now, and that’s the same for Harry Kane.
      “So, from this side, I was happy because I like it and a part of my personality is still a fan and I like that things like this happen.
      “It is also nice that Romelu Lukaku is back at Chelsea and some things are a good fit and should not be changed.”
      Tottenham to offer Harry Kane massive £100k a week pay-rise after denying wantaway striker Man City transfer More

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      Chelsea ace Kante is sport’s most likeable star, from shopping at Asda to driving a Mini and too shy to hold World Cup

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      CHELSEA star N’Golo Kante is impossible not to like.The humble 30-year-old, a World Cup winner nonetheless, has proven his credentials once again as one of football’s most modest guys.
      The 30-year-old, who has won almost all there is to win for both club and country, was snapped by a fan also doing his supermarket shopping.
      Chelsea star Kante poses with fellow shopper Sarfaz in ASDACredit: Twitter / @Sarfraz_A10
      Midfielder Kante was spotted by one fan doing his weekly shop at budget supermarket Asda.
      Speaking on Twitter, fellow shopper Sarfaz Ahmed said: “Went out for some casual grocery shopping at Asda and look who I bumped in to.
      “@nglkante what a player and what a human being! Very kindly took a picture with me and was so polite.
      “Listened patiently to what I had to say, so humble for a player of such class!”
      It’s not the first time the ex-Leicester City star has proven to be the nicest man in the beautiful game.
      HE’S NO LITTER BUG
      Before Kante was rich and famous, earning a reported £290,000-per-week, he grew up in Paris, where he was born to Malian parents.
      There he would help his father pick up litter from the streets in the hope of finding valuable waste.
      A young Kante would walk miles, which might be why he’s got such a good engine on him as a player.
      When Kante was a youngster growing up in Paris, he used to pick up litter with his fatherCredit: JS Suresnes
      CAN I RUN TO TRAINING?
      It was the Foxes who brought Kante to our shores in 2015 from Caen.
      But, astonishingly, unlike his team mates he didn’t want to get a car and wanted to run to training, which wasn’t quite the done thing.
      As Jamie Vardy recalled: “One day he said to us that he was seriously considering running to the training centre each day, which came from the fact that he would always add a little running session for himself.
      “In the moment, we were all a bit taken aback and convinced him not to.”
      Jamie Vardy recalled how Kante once revealed he wanted to run to trainingCredit: Getty Images – Getty
      FINE, I’LL GET A CAR
      In the end, Kante did get himself a motor. But it wasn’t a fancy Lamborghini or Mercedes.
      No, N’Golo went for a £20,000 Mini Cooper, which is reportedly second-hand.
      Incredibly, he still drives a Mini Cooper, even after getting involved in a crash with a lorry in 2018.
      Kante seen driving his beloved Mini CooperCredit: iCelebTV
      STAY WITH ME
      Acts of generosity aren’t uncommon in Kante’s world.
      When former Leicester defender Cedric Kipre struggled to find a home to live, Kante let him crash at his…. with his brother.
      “I lived at N’Golo’s house for a month when I was at Leicester,” Kipre told Goal.
      “I had a problem with my apartment and he hosted my brother and me. Not everyone would have done it, and it was really nice of him.
      “Today, I’m proud to have met someone like him. There is nobody more humble than N’Golo.”
      Former Wigan star Cedric Kipre and his brother stayed with N’Golo Kante for a monthCredit: Getty
      Kind Kante once let a former team mate stay at his home with his brother while he found a place to liveCredit: PA
      NO TO OFFSHORE TAX COMPANY
      Back in 2018, Kante was rewarded with a new five-year contract worth £290,000-per-week.
      It was reported that Chelsea advised him to set up an offshore tax company, but he wasn’t having any of it.
      Kante insisted that he wanted to pay full tax, unlike many of his peers.
      After hearing the story, French pal Blaise Matuidi said: “I didn’t really follow this story, but I’m not surprised because it is N’Golo.
      “He’s perfect, he doesn’t cheat. Just a bit when he plays cards.”
      Kante earns £290,000-per-week at Chelsea, but refused to be paid in an offshore account to avoid taxCredit: Getty
      APOLOGISING TO AN ARSENAL FAN
      Kante even has time for his rival’s fans.
      A day after the Blues beat London rivals Arsenal 3-2 in 2018, he bumped into a Gooner, who wanted a photo with the footballer.
      Sharky shared his story on Twitter. “Just met this man. Told him I was an arsenal fan and I was upset about the game this weekend but he smiled at me and said “sorry”. What a guy.”
      Just met this man. Told him I was an arsenal fan and I was upset about the game this weekend but he smiled at me and said “sorry”. What a guy 😭 pic.twitter.com/L8sukTnc7L— sharky (@ohnosharky) August 19, 2018

      DOESN’T FORGET HIS OWN FANS
      That said, it’s his own fans that he values more.
      In fact, Kante once turned up at the wedding of a Chelsea fan’s daughter, after turning down the invite originally.
      “We became friends when I was introduced to him by a friend and he came to my restaurant Chak89,” Frank Khalid explained.
      “I invited him and originally he couldn’t attend because of his commitment to the French national team, but because of his injury he messaged me saying he was coming.
      “My family and myself are very close to N’Golo and he was one of the first people to visit me when I had my triple bypass surgery operation in April 2018.
      “He stayed till the end and was so nice to everyone and signed autographs and took selfies with the guests.”
      Kante attended the daughter of Chelsea fan Frank Khalid’s weddingCredit: Frank Khalid
      Fan Frank met the player through is pan-Asian restaurantCredit: Frank Khalid
      Was really great to see @nglkante mingling with my guests at my daughters wedding. He must of been asked for a million selfies and he happily obliged every person that was at the wedding. He was happy to be there. 💙 #CFC pic.twitter.com/LHtUPTFOqz— Frank Khalid (@FrankKhalidUK) September 2, 2019

      EATS CURRY AND WATCHES MOTD
      A lot of football fans do this ritual – a curry before settling down to watch the day’s highlights on Match of the Day.
      And that’s exactly what Kante did when he missed his Eurostar train back to France. He Googled the nearest Mosque to St Pancras and prayed.
      Arsenal fan Badlur Rahman Jalil immediately recognised him and explained how Kante ended up coming back to his to watch Match of the Day.
      “I went to the mosque on Saturday evening to pray and we just prayed together. It’s Islamic teaching to invite guests to your house for dinner, so I asked him,” Badlur revealed.
      “He came with me and my brother because he was on his own and said he was only going to go home anyway.
      “He was on a protein diet so we had a chicken curry. He even had a cup of tea.
      “He beat us all at Fifa and then we watched Match of the Day. It was a really nice evening.”
      Kante enjoyed a curry and Match of the Day at a fan’s home
      TOO SHY TO HOLD THE WORLD CUP
      In 2018, Kante achieved the pinnacle – wining the World Cup for his country.

      But, the notoriously shy star didn’t want to impose on his team mates and was reluctant to hold the trophy.
      Luckily, Steven N’Zonzi saw the issue and told his French team mates to give Kante a go.
      It just makes you admire the man’s humility even more.
      Kante had to be convinced to hold the World Cup by his peers because he was initially to shyCredit: Afp or licensors
      N’Golo Kante eats pizza on his own in Chelsea dressing room while team-mates dance around him after Super Cup win More

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      Ex-Chelsea ace Pedro takes dig at Jose Mourinho for giving him cold shoulder at Roma before controversial Lazio transfer

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      FORMER Chelsea star Pedro suggested Roma manager Jose Mourinho is the reason behind his controversial move to Lazio.The winger left the Giallorossi in the summer transfer window for their Roman rivals where he has reunited with former Blues boss Maurizio Sarri.
      Lazio star Pedro left Roma during the summer transfer window after a year at RomaCredit: Rex
      Pedro suggested Roma boss Jose Mourinho is the reason behind his exit from the OlimpicoCredit: Rex
      The Spain international made that decision after being frozen out of the team by Mourinho and the rest of his coaching staff.
      But the 34-year-old found what he was looking for after just one conversation with Sarri and now insists that Roma belong to the past.
      Pedro said: “It was very complicated in Roma, they left me out of the team and none of the coaches spoke to me, I didn’t know anything about this matter.
      “When I spoke with Maurizio Sarri I realised that Lazio was a great opportunity.
      “It is true that no player has left Roma for Lazio in a long time, but I am very happy here.
      “Roma is in the past, I don’t want to talk about that anymore, my goal now is to help Lazio and my team-mates.”

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      Pedro joined Roma in 2020 following a five-year stint at Chelsea where he won a Premier League, FA Cup and Europa League title.
      The former Barcelona star amassed a total of 43 goals and 28 assists in 206 appearances across all competitions at Stamford Bridge.
      The Spaniard also spent some time with Mourinho in west London during the disastrous 2015-2016 campaign that saw the team finishing 10th and the Portuguese manager getting fired mid-way through the season.
      But the former Manchester United and Tottenham boss didn’t maintain Pedro within his ranks following six goals and seven assists in 40 matches at Roma.

      Angry A.S. Roma coach Jose Mourinho gets sent off over after protesting handball goal scored by Real Betis More

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      Chelsea ‘willing to send Timo Werner to Bayern Munich in swap transfer for Leroy Sane’

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      CHELSEA are interested in a swap deal involving Timo Werner and Leroy Sane ahead of next summer.That is according to Todos Fichajes, who report that the Blues are targeting Sane and are willing to let Werner go the other way to Bayern Munich.
      Chelsea star Timo Werner has been linked with a swap deal to Bayern MunichCredit: EPA
      Bayern Munich star Leroy Sane has been targeted by ChelseaCredit: Getty
      The striker has been among Bayern’s top targets for quite some time after his former RB Leipzig manager Julian Nagelsmann took over at the Allianz Arena.
      The Germany international endured a turbulent debut campaign with the Blues and has fallen down the pecking order following Romelu Lukaku’s record £97.5million return to Stamford Bridge.
      The west Londoners are reportedly looking to pounce on that opportunity as they could use the 25-year-old as leverage to sign former Manchester City star Sane.
      However, the German champions are not keen on letting the winger go after spending a hefty £38.4m in 2020, even though he has been relegated to a supporting role.
      Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel also insists Werner remains an integral part of the club despite recent reports suggesting he will soon leave.
      Tuchel recently said: “I am sure that we will find games and solutions where we play with both of them [Werner and Lukaku].
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      “We did already and Timo and Romelu can be a good fit together.
      “Timo loves to play around a reference up front and Romelu is clearly our reference up front being a tall and physical player.
      “The most important is he finds his rhythm and confidence and joy and makes his point and makes his way into the team.
      “The players are in charge to take their positions and fight for their positions and once they have it to not give it away.
      “We are very happy that he scored and played [for Germany in the international break] and on we go.
      “We have not too many players but we have players with high quality and high ambition and Timo is clearly a guy that we count on and that is absolutely necessary we have him on high level.”
      Chelsea Boss Thomas Tuchel Confirms N’Golo Kante and Christian Pulisic Will MISS Aston Villa Clash After Returning From International Break Injured More