Chelsea prospect Andreas Christensen is ready to face the challenge at getting a first team spot at Stamford Bridge.
Christensen has spent the last two seasons on loan at Borussia Moenchengladbach, and is now ready to make his mark with the Premier League champions, according to the Evening Standard.
The young Danish defender faced the likes of Robert Lewandowski ans Thomas Muller during his time in the Bundesliga and he also impressed with his composed performances in the Champions League.
“I have come back to Chelsea a better player than the one that left two years ago”, said Christensen. “I played about 80 games in two seasons and I have a lot more experience. I have a bit more toughness, more mental than physical.
“The physical side of things is something I still have to build on, but mentally it has given me a lot. I’m more confident, I feel ready for bigger things. I was up against a lot of top strikers, big teams. I remember when I played against Bayern for the first time, I was nervous beforehand because it is easy to look like a clown playing against these guys.”
“Borussia played one against one at the back and I was directly up against Lewandowski first and then Muller later on, but we won the game 3-1. Everything went well and this is the kind of thing that gives me more self-belief at the top level.”
Christensen moved to Chelsea’s academy at the tender age of just 16 and he has long been regarded as John Terry’s natural successor in the Chelsea defence.
Yet, as with any young player, chances at Chelsea are increasingly hard to come by and the club have been criticised for selling their youth prospects off too soon.
“Some people say that they just abandon you, that they don’t keep an eye on you, but that is definitely not true”, said Christensen.
“There is (loan technical coach) Eddie Newton and (assistant) Paulo Ferreira doing a great job and they visited me quite a few times.”
“They would also send me videos of my games, telling me where to improve. I always watched those videos, would take the advice on board and take it into the next game, even though sometimes I’d forget another thing! I got all the help I needed.”