Jamie Gittens is not peeved that he now has left-wing competition at Chelsea from Morgan Rogers, purchased from Aston Villa at a cost of £117million, the most money ever spent on an English signing.
Rather, he sees this record-breaking acquisition as a step towards this club taking titles again.
‘We want to win everything – that is our ambition, to win the Premier League, the FA Cup, win anything that we’re in,’ Gittens told us, standing pitch-side at the Allianz Stadium in Sydney. ‘Bringing in a player like Morgan will hopefully raise the bar to win titles.’
Gittens is relishing the friendly rivalry with his fellow Manchester City academy alumnus in Rogers, and it was during our interview that this 21-year-old Englishman earned an enormous cheer from the 4,500 Chelsea fans in attendance for their open training session.
The reason was a kid had invaded the pitch to try to get Estevao Willian’s autograph. As security led the young man back towards his guardians in the stands, Gittens paused our conversation to sign his shirt, with the supporters watching on appreciating that gesture.
Gittens has not got to hear too many cheers from Chelsea fans. His first season at the club after being signed for £52m from Borussia Dortmund was written off in January following a hamstring injury. He is itching to return, and as revealed by Daily Mail Sport, he scored in both of their behind-closed-doors friendlies versus Crawley and Bromley last week at their Cobham training base.
Jamie Gittens has welcomed Morgan Rogers arrival at Chelsea despite added competition on the left wing
Gittens views the signing of Rogers as a step towards Chelsea winning major honours again
Gittens, who scored in two behind closed doors friendlies, has his own set of objectives for next season
‘I feel at 92 per cent,’ Gittens said when asked if he is at 100 yet. ‘I’m feeling much better, more confident now my body is better, the hamstrings are good, so I’m waiting for the season to start.
‘I was training every day (over the summer), in Portugal, in Marbella, training myself to the maximum to get ready for the season. It was hard, because this was the first muscle injury I’ve had. I’ve never had hamstring injuries before. Never with the hamstring.
‘It was a challenge at the start, but I’m better now so I feel more confident. It was hard for me, but I’m here now and hopefully I can get back and tell myself that I did good in the situation.’
Gittens has his own objectives for the next season. He has written them down on a piece of paper at home. He did not want to reveal them to us when asked, but did continue: ‘This is such a big club. I want to succeed here. I need to show people what I can do. I’ll keep working hard. I’ve shown glimpses, I would say. Small bits. But this season will be a good season.’
Among the drills practised in Chelsea’s training session in Sydney was crossing from the left and the right. From the left wing, we had Gittens, Cole Palmer and academy graduate Landon Emenalo whipping in the ball. From the right wing, we had Estevao, Marco Palestra and Aaron Anselmino, who was then replaced by Cobham representative Reggie Walsh.
Soon, Chelsea should have a new set-piece specialist in Austin MacPhee overseeing such routines. Like Rogers, he is in line to arrive from Aston Villa, with Bernardo Cueva revealed by Daily Mail Sport to be switching to a role behind the scenes and away from the pitch.
Chelsea have friendlies versus Western Sydney Wanderers and Tottenham in Sydney before moving on to touring Asia, and Alonso was extremely involved in training here, often demonstrating how class is permanent as he set up players in drills.
‘He wants me to keep being positive, to keep on taking on players, to keep on creating chances and to keep on pushing myself to the maximum,’ Gittens said on the message to him from Alonso.
Gittens debut season at Chelsea came to an end in January after he suffered a hamstring injury
New Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso has told Gittens to keep being positive, to keep on taking on players and keep on creating chances
‘He’s a very nice guy. He talks to us individually, speaks to us about what we can improve on, what we can do better. As a player, that’s all you want. I think (his style can suit him as a winger). Last season was a 4-3-3 as well with two wingers which is always good, so let’s just see. Our quality is there, for sure, as a team and we have individuals on the pitch who can do amazing things.’
Alejandro Garnacho is now being moved on by Chelsea after a single season in which he failed to impress on the left wing following his £40m arrival from Manchester United. He had less leeway than Gittens, given his injury. ‘To be honest, I just look at myself,’ the man staying at Chelsea said when asked about Garnacho leaving. ‘I don’t look at anyone else. I just focus on myself and try to be better.’
Gittens played against Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen with Dortmund. He knows how good of a tactician the 44-year-old Spaniard can be. Now he hopes to excel under him at Chelsea and earn his place in their side, even with a £117m signing in Rogers as his competition.
