Slonina started his career in his native USA, making his way from small-sided games to academy football and then Major League Soccer with local side Chicago Fire, before signing for Chelsea as an 18-year-old.

Now 21, the keeper recalls how he was introduced to the sport, entered the professional game and crossed the Atlantic to London...

Your first pair of boots were…

They were Diadora. They weren’t even boots, they were futsal shoes. They were the first pair I remember owning. I started playing on indoor astro-turf, and then I just started to love it and play in outdoor games.

The first kit you owned was…

Honestly it was probably one of my own, because my parents would always put the name on the back of my jerseys. I don’t really remember owning anyone else’s kit, so it was probably myself. I never really had a team growing up that I fully was a supporter of and would have had a shirt for.

Your first team was…

I played for Addison United. They were a local team from where I was from, I just needed to cross the street to get to the park where we trained, so it was Addison United in Illinois.

Your first coach was…

Frank Deangelo was my first coach at Addison United, but then my first influential goalkeeper coach was probably Igor Dimov. I met him before I joined Chicago Fire, but then I ended up joining Chicago Fire and then a year later he joined Chicago Fire, so it was good to work with him when I was in the academy there. I think a lot of my playing style and the things I grew up with were because of him, so big credit to him.

The first piece of advice that you remember was...

I think, for a goalkeeper as well, to always move on to the next action, because as a goalkeeper you might make a mistake that leads to a goal, but the next job after that is to make sure you don’t do it again so you don’t keep conceding. You want to be there for your team to make the saves and keep them in the game, because your team can always come back to score a goal or two to win or tie the game. So just always be focused on the next action.

Your first friend in football was…

Probably a few guys from the Fire academy. Brian Gutierrez, he’s doing really well with Chicago Fire now, been called up to some national team camps. And Javier Casas, I grew up playing with him as well. I grew up with them and we all went professional with Chicago Fire, so that was nice.

The first team-mate you roomed with was…

He’s back in college now, but Diego Alvarado was probably the first team-mate I roomed with. I lived very close to him and would always car pool with him to training and all of that. He’s in college now, so hopefully he gets into the league.

Your first-team debut was against…

New York City FC, we tied that game 0-0. I got a clean sheet on my debut, so I was really happy with that.

The first time I was recognised in public was…

It was actually while I was still in the academy. They would do these showcases with a bunch of academies in the US, before MLS NEXT and all of that. I don’t remember who it was exactly, but I had already signed for Chicago Fire but I was still playing with the academy, just to keep playing and experiencing the lifestyle and all of that. We were there with the academy and someone recognised me there.

Your first emotion after signing for Chelsea was…

I think just gratitude. It obviously changed my life, it changed my family’s life, so I will forever be grateful for that and never take that opportunity for granted, to show what I can do and keep learning and improving from the people around me. Not just the players, but also creating friendships with everyone working for the club, because I think it’s like one big family here. So I’ll forever be grateful for that, it’s always going to be part of my life.