Ben Chilwell's recovery from a partial anterior cruciate ligament tear had gone as well as hoped. A fortnight after limping off against Juventus in late November, the Chelsea full-back was jogging around the training pitches at Cobham. Three weeks later, a return to first-team training was planned. All that stood in Chilwell's way was a Christmas Day rehabilitation session.
"The plan was for me to watch the guys on Boxing Day and then train with the group that didn't play on the 27th," the England international explains. "But on Christmas Day, I was doing a session out on the pitch, and I just felt it go again.
"It was the same thing that happened against Juventus. I planted my foot on the grass, and my knee just buckled. It wasn't as painful, but it was the same feeling I had against Juventus – and I knew I couldn't go through my career doing that every month."
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Twenty-four hours later, the decision was taken for Chilwell to undergo surgery. He would miss the next five months of a season that had promised so much for the defender, and Chelsea, whose Premier League title bid fizzled out in the weeks after the 25-year-old was sidelined.
"I'm quite good with adversity," Chilwell says. "And while it obviously affected me because I was having a good season, I took it in my stride. I was pretty positive straight after the surgery because in my head, once that was done, I was ready to crack on with the rehab, get stronger, get fitter, become mentally stronger, and come back for pre-season flying and ready to go."
Chilwell's recovery from his surgery hadn't even begun in earnest at Cobham when he was joined in the treatment room by his good friend and equally as an influential figure in Thomas Tuchel's side, Reece James. Without their two standout wing-backs, Chelsea's performances in January were turgid. Results suffered.
"It was tough for everyone involved with Chelsea," says Chilwell. "Reece and I were loving the way we were playing, both so confident in our game. We had a little friendly competitiveness as to who could score or assist the most. The team was playing really well, and everyone was happy.
"Injuries are a part of football; the team did well to adjust. It was a difficult patch, and it wasn't just me and Reece out. I think there were a few injuries with different players, but the team adjusted well and obviously, we were unlucky in the two cup finals. But with the injuries and covid case, and other things that could be seen as excuses last season, to get to two major cup finals was impressive.
"It gives us a lot of confidence going into this season with what at the moment is, touch wood, a fully fit team. It gives us confidence that we can have a good pre-season and a really good season together."
The monotony of rehabilitation can grind on players. Not Chilwell. He pushed himself hard and was training with Chelsea's academy sides by early May. Ahead of the final match of the season against Watford, he was back involved with the first-team squad. Yet there was no expectation that he would play.
Tuchel felt differently, however. He named Chilwell on the bench and brought the wing-back on in the closing stages. It was a reward for the 25-year-old's efforts and an important boost for the defender in the summer.
"Mentally, more than anything, it was nice to get back on the pitch, to be back at Stamford Bridge and to feel the energy from the crowd," Chilwell says. "Just little things like being in the hotel before the game, being involved in the team meeting, having dinner with the boys the night before. You take little things like that for granted. Just being involved with it again, mentally was nice.
He continues: "The season ahead with Chelsea and the World Cup were big motivations for me to do everything, those extra one percents that maybe I wouldn't have done, to push myself and make sure that when I come back, I was even better than I was before [the injury]."
Chilwell returned early for pre-season training. A decision taken to ensure he was up to speed come the club's pre-season tour of the United States. Fit and focused, and with his injury behind him, there is hope that an injury-free season for Chilwell – and James – will help Chelsea close the gap to Man City and Liverpool in the Premier League.
That will not be simple. Not only did City finish 19 points ahead of the Blues last season, but Pep Guardiola's side has been bolstered by the arrival of Erling Haaland. Liverpool, meanwhile, have signed Darwin Nunez from Benfica. Chelsea are yet to complete a signing, although Raheem Sterling is on his way.
"City and Liverpool have set the bar, for maybe the last five years, which every other team in the league is aspiring to get at," admits Chilwell. "Being a Chelsea player, I'd say we're the closest to them, and we're aspiring to get on the same level as them. We showed in patches last season that we could compete with them, but it's that consistency that they've shown — they're not just one-season wonders. They've done it season-in, season-out for the last five years.
"That's where we're trying to get to. We've had conversations in the dressing room, as players and with the staff, that consistency is the thing that we now need to [achieve]. We've got the talent in the team; we showed that in the Champions League two years ago.
"We showed it in the first half of the season last year too. We were top, we beat Juventus 4-0 in the Champions League. So we've shown we've got the talent in the team. We just need to now have that consistency that Liverpool and City have got."
Only through stability will Chelsea achieve that – and it's hoped the takeover by Todd Boehly and Clearlake capital will give Tuchel and his players that in the years ahead.
"As players, we have full confidence in the manager – we know we're not going to get a better manager here," says Chilwell. "I'm not just saying it. He's an unbelievable manager in all aspects, and I think he has a lot of trust in us as well. Now there is that stability - everything that could have potentially been tricky last season has all been resolved, so it's up to us to work and try to get that consistency on the pitch, which is only going to happen if we put the work in away from match days."
He adds: "This is Chelsea, we want to win the big trophies. And of course, we're positive going into this season, like we are every season. We've got a strong team. Hopefully, we can add to that strength with some good players. We've got a great manager. New ownership. A great training ground. Good backroom staff. So everything's in place to have a good season."
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