Chelsea’s new signing Ben Chilwell is a huge admirer of former Blues defender Ashley Cole.
Ben Chilwell joined the Blues on a five-year contract for a reported £50 million.
Ashley Cole’s trophy-laden Blues career is the template for his own Stamford Bridge stretch.
The former England international advised Chilwell to die for the badge to become a success at Chelsea Football Club.
“Coming to Chelsea as well as talking to the manager, a big factor for me was speaking to Ashley Cole when I came here,” Chilwell said to reporters on Thursday.
“Seeing the career that he had here, obviously I wanted to emulate that, and still do, and to have someone like that who has played for Chelsea, who’s English, it was important for me.
“I spoke to my agent because I was quite keen on getting to meet him, so I could just get to know him, and just pick his brains on what he thought of Chelsea as a club, how he reached the success that he reached here.
“I was quite keen to have that chat to find out things like that, and obviously I’m going to work as hard as I can over the next however many years to try and emulate what he’s done here.
“He just said: ‘Work hard’. I know it sounds pretty cliched, but he said the fans love players here who just want to work hard and who want to die for the badge.
“He said when he first came here he wanted to win for the club, he loved playing for Chelsea.
“And he said if I can take that on board, that wanting to really love the club and to win for it, then I should have a great career here.”
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