阿奇暢談 WhatsApp 群組、外租和職業生涯 - 切爾西足球俱樂部 Chelsea Football Club

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/apr/15/nathan-ake-watford-jose
-mourinho-chelsea?CMP=share_btn_tw

Nathan Ake on Watford, Mourinho and the Chelsea loanees' WhatsApp group

Arthur Renard - Friday 15 April 2016 21.09 BST


In the lobby of Watford's training ground sits a familiar figure. On a
sofa at the back of the room is Paulo Ferreira, the former Chelsea
full-back and Champions League winner who is now "assistant loan player
technical coach". His job is to keep tabs on the 34 individuals the club
has out on loan at the moment and he has just spoken to Nathan Ake, who is
developing well under the wing of Quique Sanchez Flores at Watford.


Ake's temporary stint is only 15 miles away from Stamford Bridge but other
players are dotted across Europe and one is in Brazil. The young loanees
have created a WhatsApp group, in which they update their team-mates on
their experiences. "Some of us went alone to clubs in other countries, so
we chat in the group to see how everyone is getting on," Ake says. "We are
quite close, which is nice. I think it helps us with our football as well."


The Dutch defender has been a regular part of a Watford team who travel to
West Bromwich Albion on Saturday a comfortable 15th in the Premier League
and play in an FA Cup semi-final against Crystal Palace a week on Sunday.
He has impressed at left-back, showing strong defensive qualities as well
as helping to launch many attacks, and has surprised even himself by
registering 21 starts in all competitions. "Before the season I thought it
would be a good year if I managed to get 15 starts, with perhaps a few
extra games as a sub," he says. "I have worked really hard and it has
turned out really well."


He is happily settled in England but needed to be convinced to join
Chelsea in 2011 at the age of 16. Ake initially wanted to stay in the
Netherlands with Feyenoord but after visiting Chelsea's headquarters in
Cobham he opted to make the move. Together with his parents and brother he
was shown around the facilities and met some of the first-team players.


"I remember Didier Drogba coming over to say hello," Ake says. "He told us
about the family atmosphere at the club and how everything worked. That
was quite special, also because my dad is from Ivory Coast. After seeing
the club from the inside, I realised its big extent."


Ake was placed in a host family in London with a team-mate, and his
brother was given a job at the club too. "He got a job in the Chelsea fan
store but that wasn't really for him," Ake says. "Now he is enrolled at a
university, which he really enjoys. He also started to play football in a
university team."


Ake himself quickly embraced a professional football routine at Chelsea.
Starting in the youth ranks, he was selected to train with the squads of
Andre Villas-Boas and his successor Roberto Di Matteo on occasions in his
first season. But things really took off when Rafael Benitez arrived at
Stamford Bridge at the end of 2012. In the absence of some first-team
players, Ake was handed his debut aged 17 in a Premier League victory at
Norwich City and was then able to train with the squad for the rest of the
season. "I even got game time in some Europa League matches, some other
Premier League matches and managed to make a start in an FA Cup match as
well," he recalls.


After Benitez left Chelsea in 2013, his promising start took a downward
turn as Ake was assigned to the second team when Jose Mourinho took over.
It was the first challenging moment in his career, which until then had
seen only an upward trend.


"That was quite a difficult moment to be honest," he says. "After winning
the Europa League and the Young Player of the Year award, I was focused on
continuing the process, so it came as a bit of a surprise."


Although a potential loan move went through his mind, he realised his
expectations were perhaps a bit high after a debut season in which he
achieved more than he had expected. After a few days he put the
disappointment behind him and did everything to regain his place in the
first team. Reward arrived on the final day of the season with a
substitute appearance at Cardiff but game time continued to be scarce
under Mourinho despite compliments regarding his ability.


"I asked the manager what I could improve, if there were things I could
adapt in my game," he says. "But Mourinho said I was training well and
performing well in the games I played but that I had to wait for my
chance. And I could understand it, as there were so many big players at
the club."


Although Ake did not play a lot, he liked Mourinho's coaching style.
"When you are playing a game and he is coaching on the sideline, you get
the same emotion – you are going to run harder. He's got that. He is good
in transmitting his message, and tactically he is strong too. When you
speak to him off the field, he is a really nice man as well. If you are
having your breakfast at the club, and he is sitting next to you, you can
talk about everything with him."


Ake says it is the same with Sanchez Flores, a coach he also rates
highly. "He is quieter than Mourinho, and talks with you about things
after training sessions. He is good in tactically organising the team,
like how we can compete against big teams for instance. I think our team
responds well to his methods."


The 21-year-old, who had a spell on loan at Reading last season, was
rested for Watford's most recent Premier League game, against Everton, but
hopes to return on Saturday. Ake admits midfield remains his preferred
position but is happy with the opportunities given to him by Sanchez
Flores in defence.


"I realised this was a very important year for myself," says Ake, who has
a contract with Chelsea until 2020. "I don't know yet where I will be next
season. In principle I will report for pre-season at Chelsea but I don't
know their plans. Obviously they have a new manager [Antonio Conte] as
well."


He may not know what the future holds but with all the experience Ake
gained this season, he is confident he can follow in the footsteps of
defenders such as Ferreira and make the grade at Stamford Bridge.

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