🎥 EXCLUSIVE: Fikayo Tomori on childhood idols, Milan magic and UCL dreams | OneFootball

One minute you’re playing Sunday League football with your friends and the next, you have the opportunity to fulfil your own dreams, and those of millions of other children.

That’s what happened to Fikayo Tomori – or Oluwafikayomi Oluwadamilola Fikayo Tomori – who caught the eyes of Chelsea scouts playing for Riverview United in North Kent.

“Yes, that’s my full name,” he tells Onefootball with a smile. “It means God has filled me with joy.”

But being talented is one thing, standing out enough to alert Premier League talent spotters was a sign that Tomori was always destined for greatness.

“I remember when I was younger, I would always think to myself about how people become professional footballers.

“And then a scout from Chelsea came, spoke to my dad at the end of the season and said, ‘I’ve been watching your son and I want him to come to the development centre’.

Those muddy Sunday League pitches were soon swapped for perfectly cut grass and modern training facilities, but this transition also required significant mental adjustment.

“I remember my first day at the academy and suddenly, there are kids from all around London who can do the same thing I can,” the defender explained.

“That wasn’t easy for me. I said to my dad when I got in the car, ‘Dad, I’m not sure I can come back’. He said, ‘no, no, you’re coming back for sure’.

That levelling out of talent is never easy for children who often found themselves ahead of the curve, but this was an opportunity too good to ignore.

“He stressed that I needed to be in a place where I was challenged, where I could improve myself.”

And naturally, it wasn’t long before Tomori and his father were heading to Stamford Bridge to watch the Blues during one of their most successful periods under José Mourinho.

“I remember the first time my dad and I went to a Chelsea game because we’d never actually seen a football game live.

“I can’t remember how old I was, maybe nine or ten. We saw Didier Drogba, who walked past us when he was warming up.

“We just looked at each other and thought, woah, that’s the Drogba we usually see on TV and now we can see him in 3D.”

But it was another striker who the defender idolised most during his childhood, although we imagine he wouldn’t have been alone at that moment.

“Thierry Henry was my idol when I was playing for my Sunday league team,” he says with a smile. “I always used to have gloves on, and pull my socks over my knees.

“If he scored a goal on Saturday, I would make sure to repeat the celebration if I scored on Sunday.

“There was one time when he curled it in the corner and just jogged away casually. So, I remember when I scored a goal, I did the exact same thing.”

Fourteen years, three Championship loans and a Premier League debut later – the UEFA Champions League lights were calling and years of hard work amounted to this moment.

“My debut in the Champions League was against Valencia at Stamford Bridge (2019/20 season). All I could think about was playing well, nothing else.”

“Today I’m playing in the Champions League, this is what I’ve been wanting for however many years.

“You know it’s so strange, the whole day you kind of build up to it and then the game just goes so fast.”

Unfortunately for Tomori, Chelsea were beaten as Frank Lampard’s first game as a manager in the tournament ended in disappointment, although they still ended up reaching the knockout stage.

And two years later there would be a chance to swap the blue of Chelsea for the red and black stripes of AC Milan – a career path rarely seen for English players.

“I remember the first call I got from (Paolo) Maldini and he explained straight away that they wanted me.

“I’d grown up watching iconic Milan teams and players thought: ‘really? AC Milan?’ but once I put on the red and black stripes, it was surreal.

“San Siro as well – it’s like a monument. It’s there, you can see it the whole way as you’re driving past. It feels like it’s leaning towards you.

“And then on a matchday, the fans are there two hours before the game banging on the bus. You can see how excited and how charged they are, you feel the energy from them.”

But the 25-year-old quickly became a fan favourite at San Siro and is close to making 100 appearances for the Rossoneri, having played a crucial role in securing the club’s first Scudetto in 11 years last season.

“When you’re preparing in those last few minutes before a game and you hear the whole stadium sing ‘the champions’, it gives you goosebumps every time.

“I remember when I scored against Liverpool and looking back, I have to remind myself that I’ve scored for Milan at San Siro in the Champions League.

“Those things are crazy to think about. This is what I used to watch people do and now I’m doing it.”

Tomori’s ascent from grassroots football, to loanee and now Champions League regular was the culmination of a long journey. But his story is far from over.

“I think my dream in life – and this might sound a bit cliché – is to not have any regrets.

“I want to be able to say at the end of it, I did everything I could and in the right way. That I’ve allowed myself to be myself.

“Obviously, a dream is to win the Champions League. To win the World Cup, win the Scudetto again, win every trophy possible that I can with Milan as long as I’m here.”