England vs Netherlands: Ben Chilwell’s journey from his local park to the Nations League semi-finals

Having only made his international debut in September, the defender, still just 22 years of age, has come a long way in a short space of time

Ben Chilwell’s swift but deserved ascent to the summit of the English game doesn’t begin on the field of play. Far from it. Instead, it starts, rather unassumingly, 12 months ago at a local park near his home in Milton Keynes. Here, as England sweltered under the hottest of summers, and as Gareth Southgate’s men carved out their slice of history in Russia, Chilwell took it back to basics in his pursuit of self-improvement.

For three weeks, up and down the side of a Sunday League pitch, the youngster ran himself into the ground. Pounding the sun-baked soil beneath him, Chilwell had one goal on his mind: a permanent starting role at Leicester. “I thought if I could come back in the best shape physically I’d give myself the best chance to start the season and obviously if I can start the season well I can play the whole season,” he says.

But fast forward to the present, it’s safe to say the youngster’s expectations have been somewhat adjusted and raised. After a stellar season with the Foxes – during which he captured the eye with his marauding charges down the flank and composure in defence – Chilwell now finds himself as England’s first-choice left-back for this Thursday's Nations League semi-final. Having only made his debut in September – a 1-0 win against Switzerland – the defender, still just 22 years of age, has come a long way in a short space of time.

Not that he is letting this faze him. Indeed, the transition into senior England life has been seamless. As he explains, his days with the Under-21s proved immensely beneficial. “I was probably nowhere near as nervous as I thought I would be obviously because I knew a lot of the boys, and obviously the gaffer I knew when I was in the Under-21s,” he says. “When you’re playing with people you’ve known for years you do feel a lot more comfortable – not just myself but I’d say everyone feels the same.”

Even so, Chilwell remains fully attuned to the privilege and pressure that comes with wearing the England shirt. When it comes to the latter, though, he admits it’s more often than not self-inflicted. “Obviously there’s a lot that comes with playing for England. There’s a lot of pressure we put on ourselves because we want to do well for ourselves and obviously do well for your country.”

Despite such pressure, Chilwell has been fearless so far in his six appearances for England, the highlight coming in the memorable 3-2 Nations League win against Spain at the Benito Villamarín Stadium. Raheem Sterling’s goal-scoring heroics may have dominated the headlines that night, but there was much to be said for Chilwell’s assured display. The youngster excelled one-on-one against Spain’s front men and utilised his pace to bring an extra sense of urgency and dynamism to England’s forward play. In all, it was a sparking performance that belied his inexperience and youth.

But in spite of what we may have seen, Chilwell admits it was an experience that pushed him to his very limits as a player. “The game in Spain, that was probably the most nervous I’ve been going into a game for a while,” he says. “Obviously the way that game went, especially the first half, was a massive confidence boost for myself and the fact that Gareth choose to have faith in me and play me in those games.

“I found the people I was playing against were finding positions on the pitch which I’ve not really faced before. Thiago [Alcantara] especially, he was finding little pockets, it was difficult to know whether to go and press him or not.

“It’s a learning curve and I was playing with players around me who were helping me through it. That game was a game where I thought it was… not a massive step up but there are times when you do feel like “Do I go there or not?”

But while Chilwell appreciates the ‘learning curve’ that comes with being thrown into the deep end, he’s made it clear he has no desire to dwell on the present. With his sights set skyward, the youngster’s focus is on winning trophies with this England team. “Beating Holland is where all of our heads are at, then if we get to the final hopefully winning that,” he says. “It’s exciting. We’re all looking forward to the summer and winning something, winning a major trophy which a senior team has not done since 1966. We’re just excited for that. This is a young squad and we want to win stuff now. We don’t want to learn over the next few years and start winning in a few years. We want to win this summer and then continue to win for the rest of our careers.”

Chilwell could be accused of wanting to run before he can walk, but the optimism of youth can be a powerful thing – and given the composition of this England squad, it seems Southgate has every intention to continue channelling this in the weeks, months and even years ahead.

Ben Chilwell in action for Leicester last season (AFP/Getty Images)

The future is certainly bright for Chilwell and co, but the Leicester City man is still keen to make sure he doesn’t let this get the better of him. “My Dad makes sure my feet are on the floor,” he explains. “I’ve never been in a situation where I thought it might get to my head but I can imagine if he saw something he would be the first to tell me something about it.”

As such, it looks like another summer down the local park can be expected for the budding 22-year-old. “I’ll have a few weeks off to relax as it is important to get away from football,” he admits. “[But] straight after that I’ll be back in the park with him doing my sprints.”