'I won titles with Chelsea before injuries ruined my career - now I play in Baller League'
A former Chelsea player has switched to the Baller League after a string of injuries.
A former Chelsea player signed up to the Baller League after seeing his career fizzle out due to some horrendous luck with injuries. The man in question starred alongside Declan Rice and Mason Mount while part of the Blues' academy. He helped them to win the UEFA Youth League and FA Youth Cup before his hopes of making it in the senior game quickly unravelled.
The winger was hit with a series of injuries and needed special treatment in Barcelona, having bone marrow taken out of his hips. He also had stem cell injections before a frightening new problem reared its head after a trip to New York. He was rushed to hospital for emergency treatment to fix a collapsed lung, after which his football career never really got going.
The player in question is Charlie Wakefield, who told Sport Bible earlier this year: "It all came on top of each other. I flew there [to New York] and I was only there for like five days and it was quite a long flight there and back. It set something off with my lungs.
"I landed and the next day I was on the way to start my rehab at Cobham. I started getting these chest pains while driving. As I was getting closer to Cobham it was getting worse and worse.
"I managed to get there and got rushed to hospital with a pneumothorax, which is basically a collapsed lung. They have to inject into your chest to suck out all the blocked air. Since I had mine, I've seen it in movies a few times."
Wakefield was released by Chelsea in 2019 without ever making a senior appearance for the Blues. He spent a year at Coventry City and went on to play for several non-league clubs, playing 57 of his 104 total games for Yeovil Town.
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After being let go by Woking in the summer of 2024, a new opportunity presented itself. Wakefield was in no rush to return to the professional game and instead chose to join the Baller League, where he has been showing off his natural ability.
Wakefield has scored three goals in 10 games for N5 FC, who are managed by Arsenal legends Jens Lehmann, Robert Pires and Freddie Ljungberg.
"Nothing came up that I wanted to pursue and a few months down the line I got a message about the Baller League and that perked my ears up," he explained.
"The timing for me was perfect, not having a club but still wanting to play football and I think this project they've got going on is the best way to play football.
"I've always loved playing six-a-side and to be able to do it on a big stage with Sky Sports, YouTube, Twitch and all the names that are backing it, it's a great opportunity."
