Mason Mount has had plenty of experience in fighting back from adversity during his three-and-a-half years as a senior regular at Chelsea and the midfielder is aiming to show what the team can do when the Blues host Manchester City this evening.
The hosts welcome Pep Guardiola’s side to Stamford Bridge amid a run of patchy form, with one win in the past six league matches and a 1-1 draw away at Nottingham Forest our most recent Premier League result, leaving us trailing the champions by eight places and 11 points.
That makes the contest even more significant as Graham Potter’s side look to rediscover some momentum at the start of a new year and our number 19 believes the group’s togetherness will be key to returning to the right track.
‘It can be very decisive for us,’ Mount said. ‘We know what position we’re in at the moment and playing against one of the best teams in the league is going to be very tough.
‘We know we can give it everything and it’s at Stamford Bridge so we want to show the fans what we can do. It’s been up and down but we need to stick together and keep trying to work through these difficult periods. That’s all we can we do.’
In our last home match against Bournemouth, Mount marked his 150th Chelsea start with the opening goal in our 2-0 victory, a sumptuous curler guided into the bottom corner.
It was the seventh goal he has either scored or assisted this season and left him reflecting on his remarkable personal pathway to the top.
‘It’s been a crazy journey to get to this moment right now,’ he said. ‘I didn’t think when I was coming up from Portsmouth into Cobham at six or seven years old that I’d be getting 150 starts for the club.
‘It’s very special and there are a lot of memories to look back on already.
‘You never want to wait that long,’ he added about his first goal at the Bridge for a year. ‘It’s the best feeling ever to score at home and it was a nice one to help win the game. Hopefully that continues and I keep scoring some more goals at home.’
Undoubtedly Mount’s most special start, and his defining goal involvement to date, came against tonight’s opponents on the banks of the Douro in Porto.
Mount supplied the pass for Kai Havertz to net the only goal of the game in the 2021 Champions League final and that remains a memory that brings the goosebumps for the man who turns 24 next week.
‘I’ve watched it a lot but as time goes on you try to think forward more,’ he said. ‘It’s still such an amazing moment for us all - to be not in the best position when we got through the group stage and to then turn things around and win the Champions League.
‘It’s a journey that maybe took us all by surprise as we kept winning but the momentum that we gained every single game, we felt like something special was happening.
‘To reach the final and then beat City, such a top team, it was the best day of my life.’
Mount will be hoping for plenty more memorable days in blue as he works towards another 150 starts for his boyhood club, starting with another big win against City under the lights at the Bridge this evening.