Leicester City left-back Ben Chilwell has “no regrets” at not joining Liverpool
Ben Chilwell says his burgeoning England career is evidence enough that he made the right choice when joining Leicester City over Liverpool.
The left-back initially broke through at the King Power Stadium in the 2015/16 season and has since gone on to make 95 appearances for the Foxes.
How close was Chilwell to joining Liverpool? Five things to know…
- Chilwell made his Leicester debut in the 2015/16 season.
- He has since appeared 95 times for the Foxes.
- But he has revealed that, at 17, he also had the chance to join Liverpool.
- Now 22, Chilwell has eight England caps and insists he has no regrets at his choice.
- Chilwell has won 29 duels and made 35 recoveries in the Premier League this season.
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His form over the last 12 months has also seen him pick up eight caps for England and he now looks more and more like Gareth Southgate’s first choice moving forward.
Chilwell has revealed that, at 17, he had the option to join Liverpool – who were then managed by Brendan Rodgers – instead but even though he’s had to watch on as the Reds have sealed their sixth Champions League crown and challenge for Premier League titles, he insists he has no regrets and points to his international caps as vindication.
“I was 17 at the time. My agent was the one dealing with it all, talking to Liverpool and Leicester about the situation,” he told Sky Sports.
“At the time, I was trying to break into the U21 team at Leicester so I was just focused on getting into that and progressing into the first team here.”
He added: “Definitely no regrets. When I look at how the last four or five years have gone, starting eight games now for the England team is something I’m very happy with.
“Leicester was the right place for me to be at the time and the older players have helped me a lot. The staff have kept me grounded. Definitely no regrets.”
Leicester have made a strong start to the season, taking 14 points from seven games so far and sitting third in the Premier League table.
The Foxes are seven points behind leaders Liverpool and travel to Anfield to take on Jurgen Klopp’s men on Saturday – Rodgers’ first return to his former club since being sacked in 2015.
And Chilwell admits he and his Leicester team-mates would “love” to get the win at Anfield for Rodgers, who he says is “loved” among the Foxes’ squad.
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“He’s loved at the training ground. Everyone knows how good he is,” he added.
“What he’s brought in over the last season or so, he’s freshened it all up, the training’s different every day and he’s improving the players as well.
“He wants to win games but also wants to improve the team for the future and looking in the long run to where we can be in five years instead of a short fix.
“Any manager going back to their old stadium will want to get a win. He’s very relaxed, training’s been the same as it has been the whole season.
“It would be nice to go there and put a performance for the boss.”
