Former Chelsea forward Jeremie Boga says younger players being ‘stronger physically’ than those in France made it tough for him when he joined the club.
Boga joined the Blues as a youth player in 2014, working his way up to the U23s inbetween a year-long loan spell at Stade Rennais.
He would make just one appearance for Chelsea’s senior side in his four years there, instead playing for their various youth teams and spending time out on loan at Granada and Birmingham, as well as Rennais.
He left in 2018 after failing to make the breakthrough, joining Sassuolo in Italy in a £2.7m deal and bringing his time in London to an end.
He’s since flourished in Serie A, with 16 goals and seven assists in 76 games in all competitions and numerous rumours about a move to a bigger club such as Napoli.
His development begs the question why it never happened at Chelsea and Boga says it was due to the physicality of those he was playing with.
“When you leave Marseille and your friends for a different environment, without any neighbour, it’s complicated on a daily basis,” he told Winamax.
“At Chelsea, it was a different style of play. There, the little ones are stronger physically than in France.
“The first two years were especially difficult physically because technically, I was above average. “
