Chilwell on trophy-winning, dressing rooms, leaders & Cup dreams

This interview was conducted in early March 2025 and was initially published in the Crystal Palace v Ipswich Town programme - you can buy the matchday programme by clicking HERE.

From an interview perspective, the January transfer deadline day addition passes his first acid test with flying colours. Within seconds of sitting down with us in the canteen, Chilwell’s teammates take a sudden interest in the table next door – “go and have your food, man!” he laughs, pushing one away.

They duly depart and the interview proceeds –a jovial moment but evidence that, not long since arriving at Crystal Palace, Chilwell’s voice is being heard in the dressing room.

It is the voice of a UEFA Champions League winner with Chelsea; a five-time (make that six-time, now) major competition finalist; an experienced England international; and a player who developed in Leicester City’s incredible Premier League-winning squad of 2015/16.

In more ways than one, Chilwell arrived ready to make an impact at Crystal Palace.

“Before I arrived, I knew Tyrick, Marc, Hughesy, Ebs, Eddie...” – Chilwell met many through the England youth system. I knew Wardy from away from football, and Jeff [Schlupp] before he moved on... I knew six or seven of the boys. Obviously, they’ve all been brilliant with me, and helped me settle in very quickly.

“To be honest, I was expecting to sing for my initiation – but I haven’t had that. I had to give a little speech in the first meeting I was in about how happy I was to be here, and how hopefully we can go on and do great things together for the rest of the season... I got that out of the way pretty fast!

“Everyone’s been good in different ways. There are a few of us who go and get coffees after training, there are people I get lunch with, and there are a few of us who do a shooting drill every day after training – Justin won today, Ebs won yesterday, Eddie is good, and I put myself up there!

“Coming in, I’ve noticed how together this group is – and not just the players, the whole building. At the training ground, all the staff and all the players are very close. It’s a very close-knit group of people, and when I think of the teams I’ve played in which have been successful, they’ve always had the togetherness that seems to be here as well.”

We refer back, then, to Chilwell’s career. Having featured 123 times for Leicester over five seasons, scoring four goals, his first major transfer took place in August 2020, when Chelsea paid a reported £45 million for his services. On his first start for the West Londoners, he scored the opening goal – the victims: Palace, naturally.

His athletic and technical qualities – a cross-country runner in his youth, equipped with a wand of a left foot – fit the demands of Thomas Tuchel’s preferred system, and Chilwell flourished.

In October 2021, he became the first English player to score in four consecutive Premier League games for Chelsea since Frank Lampard. By the end of the season, he was a European champion.

Then came the struggles of a ruptured cruciate ligament – a brief recovery, and the vice-captaincy – and then the difficulties of being afforded just one appearance in the first half of this season by his parent club. “It’s been a challenge, as you say,” Chilwell concurs.

“But you’ve got to literally just keep your mindset the same, keep your positivity, and manifest that the next time you go out onto the pitch, it will be for the moment you’ve been waiting for.

"You train every day for the moments where you get to play in front of fans, put in good performances and score goals. That’s the kind of motivation you need to work hard every day.

“Even though, at Chelsea, I knew I wasn’t going to be involved until January – when I was hopefully going to go and play football – you push yourself every day for the feeling of that first game in front of the fans again.

“But at the same time, the only way that’s going to happen is if you make sure your standards are high every day in training. Even when you’re not playing, you do it for yourself – and you make sure that, when you do get your opportunity, you are ready.

"It gave me the chance to look at other things. It gave me an opportunity to work on a lot of stuff; I’ve been able to really nail down previous injuries that I’ve had, and make sure my body’s 100 percent ready.

“It’s been a pretty unique experience. Usually, you don’t get a six- month period to completely get yourself right – body, mind, everything – so I used it as much as I could as a positive: to align everything, physically and mentally, for when I get my opportunity.”

Ready to go physically, ready to go mentally – and certainly ready tactically. Plenty of similarities exist between the preferred systems of Tuchel at Chelsea – for whom he recorded 21 goal involvements (nine goals, 12 assists) in 107 games – and that of his latest manager Oliver Glasner.

“In the first Zoom call we had, the manager [Glasner] spoke about what he would expect from me coming in, and what he hoped I could bring to the team,” Chilwell recalls.

“Just the tactical conversation that we had... we were very similar in what we believe about the system, and how it should be played.

“He mentioned when I played this formation under Thomas Tuchel, so I was very comfortable and I understood exactly what the manager was saying to me, from literally our first conversation. Since then, the conversations have continued out on the training pitch, obviously on match days, and just around the building.

“Playing in this position brings that element of fun to the game. Your priority is obviously to defend, but it also gives you the opportunity to get into positions to score goals and get assists. I’m a creative full-back who wants to get involved, so this shape suits me.

“Having previous success with it has really helped. Regardless of whether I’m playing, or not playing, I can bring a lot to training and in the changing room before games, after games, half-time... under Thomas, I loved getting into positions where I was always being a threat in the attacking third.”

Palace’s tactical shift under Glasner have increased the attacking returns for Chilwell’s fellow left wing-back Tyrick Mitchell; his five assists this season are a personal best.

The 28-year-old noted: “It’s a cliché thing to say, but it literally can only be a positive thing.

“Palace have got two players who are both confident in the same position, pushing each other every day in training, so when either of you play at the weekend, you’re going to be 100 percent sharp.

“Not even just that: I spoke to T before the Doncaster and Everton games, for example, about playing in this formation before, and positions I felt he could maybe take up higher up the pitch, to give him more opportunities to get on the scoresheet.

“Whether I’m playing or not playing, I’m going to help T as much as I can. He’s relatively new to this position in terms of playing in a back five, so I’ll give him bits of advice along the way when he is playing to help him, and to help the team as well.”

As the former youth team captain at Leicester, and Chelsea vice-captain – who led his team out in last season's EFL Cup final – such a responsibility sits easily with Chilwell, who counts among his favourite leaders: “Thiago Silva is probably one of the first great leaders I’ve played with that I think of. César Azpilicueta led by example every day with his professionalism.

“Going back to Leicester, people like Andy King, Kasper Schmeichel, Jamie Vardy... it’s very important that every team has people who want to lead. I feel like it comes naturally to me.

“I’ve always liked to be vocal in the changing room, trying to help everyone around me as much as I can. Even from my first game here, away to Doncaster, I was in the changing room beforehand, getting everyone up for the game – the same at half-time, the same after the game, and the same in training every day.

“In a young group here, I feel like I can really help in that respect, as well as with the football side of things – and I enjoy doing it.”

Thiago Silva, Azpilicueta, even Vardy... players who certainly know a thing or two about the composition of a successful changing room.

That success could just be around the corner – and Chilwell's sentiments, from back in early March, take on new poignancy.

Chilwell smiled: “Of course it’s about taking every game as it comes – but it can’t harm to get the building talking about how much we can achieve this season.

“We’re just quietly confident that we can push up the league table. You’ve seen this season how two or three wins on the bounce can really push you on.

"What I’ve noticed coming in, and again trying to just emphasise having been in winning changing rooms, is that this group of players can beat anyone on their day.

“Without getting too carried away, there’s real optimism for what we can achieve this season – and not just in the league, but obviously in the FA Cup as well.

"I’ve been to the FA Cup final a few times and lost. It’d be lovely to change that this season.

“Personally speaking, I’m still the same player that won the Champions League – and I want to show everyone that.”