Levi Colwill Press Conference Location: Sydney, Australia Event: Pre-Season Tour (Sydney Super Cup 2026)
Speaker: Levi Colwill (Chelsea FC Central Defender) Q1: Kieran (Daily Mail): “How are you feeling after last season, missing so much compared to before, and how are you feeling now?” Levi Colwill:”I think I’m ready to go. Having a tiny taste there in the last season really gave me that extra motivation to come back to pre-season with that fire in my belly and ready to go again… and yeah, push on from there.”
Q2: Kieran (Daily Mail): “Obviously, the club have been linked with signing a new centre-back. Do you get consulted when the club are looking at a centre-back, as the guy who’s going to play next to whoever it is?” Levi Colwill:”No, of course, the club are going to sign whoever they believe is the best centre-back to come in and play. Could be playing alongside me, could be playing against me… You know, that’s down to the club, and whoever comes in, you know, I know will be a really good player.”
Q3: Kieran (Daily Mail): “Obviously, this time last year you suffered a major injury… Take us inside your head really, from this time last year until now?” Levi Colwill:”Yeah, it was the first day back of pre-season last year. It was really tough to get my head around, but I’m a strong believer that everything happens for a reason. So, I just try and take it in my stride.Seeing the boys on the pitch every day, obviously, hurt a lot, but I got over it and I’m back now. I feel like I’m a stronger person mentally and physically, and I feel like I’m a better person for it.”
Q4: Kieran (Daily Mail): “Reece [James] has spoken recently about being on the sidelines when injured and how that’s quite hard to take… Finding distractions. Have you had to do the same this time?” Levi Colwill:”Yeah, of course. I had to find something to keep my head on and try and distract me when I could because it was very tough, not doing what you love to do every single day. You’ve got to find something new and try and add some new characteristics to yourself, which I’ve done.I think that’s my advice for anyone out there: if you’re going through a big injury like that, try and take your mind away from it and try and improve yourself in different ways, because that’s the easiest way to try and get over an injury like that.”
Q5: Kieran (Daily Mail): “Was it more tricky because you were watching the team, especially when the team really struggled? That must have been really hard?” Levi Colwill:”Yeah, definitely. When you can’t do nothing to affect the game on the pitch, you feel helpless, and that’s hard at times. But, you know, luckily I’ve got a great team there that I can trust all the time and believe in to work hard and try and win for me.”
Q6: Rob (BBC): “How has it been so far working under Xabi [Alonso]? We’ve obviously heard a lot about how it seems like an attacking, front-foot defender’s approach…” Levi Colwill:”It’s an honor to play under a manager like him. He’s been so good so far. Especially for players like me—even as a defender—being able to have the freedom to play passes and show off your qualities on the ball… You know, that’s what I want to do as a defender. I like to create attacks and show off my passing range, which he allows me to http://do.So so far, you know, it’s been really good to work under him. Training sessions have been good, and hopefully, we can take that into tomorrow and show everyone how much we’ve improved.”
Q7: Rob (BBC): “Have you got a preference playing three at the back or four at the back?” Levi Colwill:”No, I don’t have a preference. Whatever suits the team the most and helps us win the most games. I’ll play whatever formation—I’m not bothered.”
Q8: Jack: “You said you’re a big believer that everything happens for a reason… It must have been a very difficult thing to get your head around to work out what the reason was for the injury?” Levi Colwill:”Yeah, definitely. You tell yourself everything happens for a reason, but you start doubting yourself. Like I’ve said before, you come off winning the Club World Cup, feeling on top of the world, and then an injury like that happens—it kills everything. It kills the momentum, and you know you’re out for a long time.But you’ve got to stay positive, you’ve got to believe in yourself and trust the process, which I’ve done. I felt like that helped me a lot for when I did come back towards the last few games of the season to be strong and hungry to try and be the best player I can be and help the team the most.”
Q9: Jack: “Especially in the early days after the injury, who helped you the most? Were there any colleagues or old teammates you reached out to?” Levi Colwill:”Oh, I had so many old teammates, teammates now… I had so many good people reach out to me, and, you know, it meant so much to me. I think I had a couple of players from every team I’ve played for, and it means a lot because it shows that people still care about you. That also gives you that motivation to believe in yourself to come back.”
Q10: Jack: “Having come back for the final few games of last season… How do you look ahead to this year in terms of personal ambitions and goals? Is it something you write down in a journal or on your phone?” Levi Colwill:”No, I kind of know my targets in my head. I want to try and take my game to the next level this year. I want to be regarded as one of the best centre-backs in the league this year, 100%.I think coming back for the last few games I played last season, the quality I showed proves that I can be. But I’ve just got to be consistent and show it all the way through this season and hopefully help my team and lead them onto good things this year.
Q12: Reporter: “What has Alonso been like on the training ground? We’ve heard you’ve had those two behind-closed-doors games as well… What was the messaging?” Levi Colwill:”Yeah, he’s very hands-on, which I prefer. As a manager, you want him to give you the message directly, which he’s done. He’s spoken to me a lot and tried to help me, and I think he’s tried doing that with all the boys—putting on his game plan and trying to make us play the football he wants us to play, which is really creative, attacking, free-flowing football.I think we’re doing really well. We’ve shown it in training, and I think you’ll see it tomorrow, too.”
Q13: Nick Martin (Paramount 10): “Is there a genuine belief that this team can get back to where Chelsea fans expect it to be?” Levi Colwill:”Yeah, definitely. Obviously, like I said, we’ve got an amazing manager, and I really do believe the players that we’ve got in the changing room are some of the best players in the world. When everything comes together, we can really be a strong force and push forward this season.”
Q14: Nick Martin (Paramount 10): “And just on Australia, have you had a chance to check out Sydney or anything?” Levi Colwill:”Not much yet. I want to! We’ve seen a few things, but I feel like we’ve got a few more days. Get the game out of the way tomorrow, and then hopefully we have some free time to go and see the rest of Sydney.”
Q15: Charlotte (Football 360): “Have you been surprised by the reception of the Chelsea fans here in Sydney?” Levi Colwill:”Yeah, I think the open session yesterday really opened my eyes up. I think the fans were really good, there’s so many of them, and I’m really excited for tomorrow.”
Q16: Charlotte (Football 360): “What is one thing you’ve learned so far under Xabi?” Levi Colwill:”I feel like it’s just playing free-flowing football. I feel like I’ve played under a lot of managers that want you to be in the right position and be really rigid, but with him, it’s ‘play what you see,’ find the spaces, and really exploit them with fast pace. Which I think has worked so far, and hopefully it carries on.”
Q17: Simon: “Chelsea are desperate to get back in the Champions League, but you yourself haven’t played in the Champions League yet. Is that part of your personal ambition to get Chelsea back there?” Levi Colwill:”Yeah, definitely. I think it hurt a lot last year that I didn’t get the chance to play in the Champions League. You know, it’s every young kid’s dream to get the chance to hear the anthem. So I definitely want to do everything I can to get the team back in there and hopefully have a chance to play next season in the Champs.”
Q18: Simon: “In terms of chats with Xabi, is he or are you… I know Reece is the captain, but are you set to be part of his leadership group?” Levi Colwill:”Yeah, I think we’ve got a leadership group, and I think he knows that I’ll be a part of it. The leadership qualities I have and how I like to help the team… I think we’ve got a few players that will be in that and a few characters that will push every day, and I’d like to think that I am one of them.”
Q19: Simon: “Without European football this year, what are your expectations of the team? How far do you think you can go to challenge Arsenal and City?” Levi Colwill:”Yeah, I feel like we can challenge them. Like I’ve already said, I feel like the players we’ve got in our team are ready to do that. Having a manager of this quality now… when it all comes together, we’re definitely going to be able to challenge them and push for the Premier League.”
Q20: Simon: “Cole Palmer had a year of injuries last year. What have you seen from him in pre-season heading into this year?” Levi Colwill:”Yeah, we all know how good Cole is, and you see it every single day. Of course, last year was a difficult season for him with injuries, but we’ve never taken away the belief of how good he is. He can turn it on whenever he wants.”
Q21: David (Football 360 Australia): “With the change of management this season, does coming to the other side of the world to play and spend time together help the team bond?” Levi Colwill:”Yeah, definitely. I think it’s really positive for us to be able to spend this time together and really connect, be on the pitch every day and work hard. It’s a blessing in disguise, and it helps us a lot. I feel like we’re going to be ready for this season.”
Q22: David (Football 360 Australia): “And you’ve spent some time with the Australian / Australian-born money in the squad [Nestory Irankunda], what do you make of him?” Levi Colwill:”Yeah, of course, an amazing player! Really, really bright future, and we all hope he goes as far as he can.” #ChelseaInSydney #CFC
