Fikayo Tomori has opened up about his decision to leave Chelsea for AC Milan, admitting that there is an added motivation to prove a point at Stamford Bridge tomorrow night.
There is plenty of motivation for Tomori in view of the game in west London on Wednesday as he is looking to prove to Chelsea that they were wrong to let him go back in January 2021, while he will also be hoping to impress Gareth Southgate on his ‘home soil’ and also help Milan push towards qualifying from Group E.
Nevertheless, it will be a strange experience for Tomori who spent 15 years at Chelsea from the age of eight years old, winning honours such as the UEFA Youth League before deciding to try a new experience in Italy after falling out of favour under Frank Lampard.
Tomori spoke to reporters in view of the game to shed some light on how he is feeling ahead of a return to face many former team-mates, with his comments relayed by the Evening Standard.
“Every footballer has a point to prove. Coming from Chelsea, being English there is probably added motivation. I know now that I’m not quite there [on the plane to Qatar], I’ve still got some stuff to do to get myself in the frame to be there for the World Cup, so hopefully I can do that,” he said.
“There are a lot of games between now and then for me to try and get in that squad or hopefully be in a position where I can get some minutes on the pitch. There are things in Milan where the manager [Stefano Pioli] wants me to be in certain positions or do certain things that I need to try and remember to do on the pitch and work on off the pitch to make myself a better player and to try and be better in the structure of the team.
“Those things I spoke to Gareth about and he agreed, so I know I have to try and improve those things and, from there, we will see what happens.
“I kind of knew we would draw Chelsea before the draw came out so the fact it has happened now is really exciting. It was a suspicion for me. When it came out I remember my friends were all saying ‘you knew it, you knew it!’.
“I played with Mason [Mount], Reece [James], Trevoh [Chalobah] coming up through the academy and so seeing them again … I just saw Mason, Reece and Chilly [Ben Chilwell] a couple of weeks ago on international duty so seeing them again will be nice.
“Raheem [Sterling] as well so I think seeing everyone again will be nice. Even Jorginho, I saw him again against Italy so it will be a nice reunion of sorts but it is just trying to think of it as another game.”
Tomori spoke about his Chelsea exit: “I would have liked to have been on the pitch more. It didn’t happen for whatever reason, I was itching to get back on a pitch and be playing.
“Milan gave me that opportunity and now I am here. For me, it’s another chance to see some familiar faces to show how I have developed. I know people have watched the games but going back to Stamford Bridge, where it all started, is a chance to show myself again.”
