Things have slowed down for Michy Batshuayi at Borussia Dortmund after a very impressive start to his spell in Germany.
The Belgium international, who went to the Bundesliga club on loan in order to get the game time required to earn a spot in Roberto Martinez’s World Cup squad, will most likely return to Chelsea come the end of the season where he’ll probably find a new manager.
Antonio Conte, as well as the reason for him going to Germany in the first place, was also the reason why he originally moved to Stamford Bridge from Marseille.
Speaking to Onze Mondial in a very candid interview (he did it in his pyjamas), Batshuayi opened up about his 2016 transfer.
He said: “It was heated during the Euros. My agent told me of Chelsea’s interest. When Antonio Conte then called me, I understood it was serious. He told me he wanted to make me one of the best forwards in the world, that he’d make me improve, that he really wanted me.
“That pleased me. I was super happy. Especially after what he’d showed with Italy. After our call, I immediately said that I was wanted to work with a manager like that, who wanted me, wanted to help me progress and who has class. A young player wants just that. I told myself it was perfect for me”.
Unfortunately, reality was a bit different, as Conte never really gave Batshuayi the run of games he needed, even if he scored most times coming off the bench.
Playing futsal on the side to keep his fitness up, the striker also hugely benefitted from having Diego Costa at the club, a player he learned a lot from.
He continued: “He taught me the grinta and malice. He told me: ‘Look Michy, you’re strong and quick, but you can’t take on this defender, while I’m less stacked and slower than you, but I can’. He kept repeating: ‘You can’t always think about fighting. You have to be cleverer, more sly.
“Example: you start your run behind him, or you call for the ball in front of him to kill him’. Basically, he made me understand that I could put the defenders out of their comfort zone without the ball.”
As well as moving to Dortmund for game time, Batshuayi revealed one of the reasons he decided to team up with Marco Reus and co. was the club’s kit.
He said: “Yeah, that’s true, because I really like black and yellow. It reminds me of Spongbob Squarepants and Batman. I like yellow because I know a lot of people who don’t dare wear it, and I really like it. I like trying things”.
