"I always..." - Chelsea defender Tomori reveals Arsenal legend was his idol growing up

AC Milan defender Fikayo Tomori has named an Arsenal legend as his childhood footballing idol.

Tomori joined Chelsea in 2005, and initially played at under 8 level. In 2015 and 2016, aged 17 and 18, he helped the Blues to win the UEFA Youth League and FA Youth Cup.

He made his senior debut in the 2015/16 season, although it was a successful loan spell at Derby in the 2017/18, under the management of Frank Lampard, that helped propel him into the Chelsea first team on a regular basis.

He featured on 17 occasions in the following season, but began to see his game time limited at Stamford Bridge, and accepted a loan offer from AC Milan for the second part of the 2020/21 season.

That summer, the England defender joined the Italian giants permanently, immediately becoming one of their key players and helping them to win the Scudetto last term.

Now, Tomori has opened up on the identity of his childhood idol.

Tomori names Arsenal legend as idol

Tomori named his idol as none other than Thierry Henry - one of the greatest forwards in the history of the English top division.

Henry won two Premier League titles with Arsenal and four league Golden Boots. He was also named in the PFA Team of the Century in 2007.

The France international, who was a World Cup runner-up in 2006, was named in the Premier League Hall of Fame in 2021, and scored 228 goals in 377 appearances across two spells at the Gunners.

Speaking to OneFootball, Tomori explained: "Thierry Henry was my idol when I was playing for my Sunday league team. 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."