The teenager has hit the ground running at Vitesse
The teenager has hit the ground running at Vitesse (Picture: ANP Sport via Getty Images)

Chelsea loanee Armando Broja, who is impressing at Vitesse, has set himself the lofty target of attempting to ‘surpass’ club legend Didier Drogba at Stamford Bridge.

The Blues academy graduate has excelled at youth level and made his first and only senior appearance after coming on for Olivier Giroud in a victory over Everton in March of last season.

Broja, 19, was sent out on loan to Vitesse for the 2020/21 campaign to gain more first-team experience and has dazzled at the Eredivisie club with nine goals and two assists in 20 league games.

Broja has made one senior appearance for the Blues (Picture: Getty Images)
Broja has made one senior appearance for the Blues (Picture: Getty Images)

The Albania international striker is already looking to the future and named Drogba, who scored 164 goals for the Blues, as the player that he is looking to eclipse over his career at the west London club.

‘I was like: ‘Wow! That’s Frank Lampard, [Didier] Drogba or John Terry right in front of me’, when I would see them around,’ he told Goal.

‘I loved to take pictures with them because I wanted to be them. I wanted to be in their shoes at the top level.

‘Now I am approaching the age they were when they were playing, I want to try and surpass Drogba.

‘It might not be easy, but that’s my mentality and how I am feeling.’

Despite almost reaching double figures for goals in his first full season of senior football, Broja is still hungry for more.

‘Nine goals and two assists is good but I am never satisfied,’ he added.

‘I want to get more goals and assists to keep tallying them up.

‘I have played over 1000 minutes and I have 11 goal contributions. It is not bad but I want more goals and assists. I want to do more.’

MORE : ‘That’s not the perfect away performance’ – Michael Owen hits out at Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s claim after Manchester United’s draw with Chelsea

MORE : ‘Please!’ Rio Ferdinand begs Manchester United to sign two players after Chelsea draw

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Chelsea loan star Armando Broja wants to ‘surpass’ Didier Drogba

The teenager has hit the ground running at Vitesse (Picture: ANP Sport via Getty Images) Chelsea loanee Armando Broja, who is impres...
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Sunderland v Wigan Athletic - Sky Bet League One
Kyle Joseph has made an impact at Wigan (Picture: Getty Images)

Arsenal are interested in teenage Wigan striker Kyle Joseph, who is available on a free transfer in the summer, but face competition from a string of big clubs.

The 19-year-old only made his debut for the Latics in October last year but has already scored five goals in 14 League One appearances.

Joseph has been at the club since the age of 13 but they only have him under contract until June, meaning he will be free to leave then after his impressive start to his senior career, although there will be a tribunal fee required.

His goals in League One, and his appearances for Scotland at youth level, have attracted the attention of some big clubs, especially as he is available for very little.

The Mirror report that Arsenal are involved in the race for his signature, as are Scottish giants Rangers and Celtic, along with unnamed clubs across Europe.

Former Leeds United and Coventry striker Noel Whelan was asked about the prospect by Football Insider in terms of a move to one of the Scottish Premiership powerhouses and questioned whether he was ready for that step, never mind Arsenal.

‘He’s young and has experience in League One. It’s a risk, of course, can he make that leap up to the Scottish Premiership?’ Whelan said.

‘Can he deal with the pressure of being at a big club like Celtic? No disrespect but he’s at Wigan. It’s not a huge club and never has been.

‘There are a lot of things that come with moving to a massive club like Celtic. We’ll have fans back in the stadium next season. The pressure’s gonna be on. You can do it in the third-tier, but can you do it on a bigger stage? These are things that need to be taken into consideration.’

MORE : Arsenal hero Paul Merson claims Erling Haaland would be reluctant to join Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea

MORE : Arsenal legend Paul Merson identifies Thomas Tuchel’s major ‘problem’ at Chelsea following Manchester United draw

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Arsenal join big clubs in packed race for Wigan youngster Kyle Joseph

Kyle Joseph has made an impact at Wigan (Picture: Getty Images) Arsenal are interested in teenage Wigan striker Kyle Joseph, who is ...
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Rio Ferdinand reveals he nearly fought Manchester United teammate after 'smashing' him in training
The two players had to be separated by their teammates before things escalated (Picture: Getty)

Rio Ferdinand has revealed that he nearly came to blows with Ruud van Nistelrooy in Manchester United training after ‘smashing’ the forward as payback for a naughty challenge on Cristiano Ronaldo.

The central defender moved to Old Trafford a year after Van Nistelrooy had signed from PSV and they lifted the Premier League title together in 2003, though the Dutchman was offloaded three years later when it became clear he could not play alongside the emerging Ronaldo.

Tensions between Van Nistelrooy and Ronaldo were clear in training and Ferdinand nearly got into a scrap with the striker when he intervened on behalf of the young Portuguese winger.

Rio Ferdinand reveals he nearly clashed with Manchester United teammate Ruud van Nistelrooy after 'smashing' him in training
Ferdinand went in hard on Van Nistelrooy after he ‘smashed’ Ronaldo (Picture: Getty)

‘It was mad at United, things could just switch just like that [clicks fingers] in training. I think all training grounds are the same, there’s a lot of testosterone flying about,’ Ferdinand explained on his Vibe With FIVE YouTube show.

Asked if he was ever involved in a fight, Ferdinand continued: ‘It never really got to that. It’s funny, because I’ve got the biggest mouth on the training ground. I used to always be shouting and screaming and I used to love jokes.

‘Obviously I got serious in training, with the games and that, especially on a Friday before the game on a Saturday, everyone’s playing, it would be hard games, fast games.

‘One time something happened with Ruud. Ruud van Nistelrooy smashed Cristiano Ronaldo a couple of times, went down his Achilles.

‘And then the ball went into Ruud and I smashed Ruud. I said, “What you doing? Why you kicking him for?”

‘And then Ruud got up and he was [not happy] and all the players just got in the way, so nothing happened.

‘But that’s the way it used to be in training. I was thinking, “Ronnie’s a young kid man, leave him alone, what you doing?” but Ruud was an animal, an animal player.

Cristiano Ronaldo Ruud van Nistelrooy Manchester United Signing Session
Ronaldo and Van Nistelrooy did not get on well before the latter’s sale to Real Madrid (Getty)

‘He’s the best finisher I played with. Brutal finisher. If he’d stayed at United he’d have broken every record going, he was a joke.

‘We’d play a game, we’d win 4-1, but he didn’t score, he’s in the training room after and he looked emotional. I thought, “Wow, this guy cares that we won this much, Ruud’s my guy”. I asked him if he was alright, he goes “I didn’t score! I didn’t score!” He was vexed!

‘To put the nail in the coffin, Thierry [Henry] scored two on the same day so the Golden Boot was going away. He was fuming. He was so driven to score, he was born to just score.’

MORE : Rio Ferdinand reveals he wanted Jose Mourinho to replace Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United

MORE : ‘Please!’ Rio Ferdinand begs Manchester United to sign two players after Chelsea draw

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Rio Ferdinand reveals he nearly fought Manchester United teammate Ruud van Nistelrooy after ‘smashing’ him in training

The two players had to be separated by their teammates before things escalated (Picture: Getty) Rio Ferdinand has revealed that he n...
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Andy Murray of Great Britain reacts to a missed point in his match against Robin Haase of Netherlands during Day 1 of the 48th ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament at Ahoy on March 01, 2021 in Rotterdam, Netherlands.
ROTTERDAM, NETHERLANDS – MARCH 01: (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)

Andy Murray won his first tour-level match since August on Monday night but admitted after he is playing under ‘extra stress’ amid constant speculation over his future.

Murray, the three-time Grand Slam champion from Dunblane, fought his way back from a set down to beat Robin Haase at the ABN Amro World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam and recovered from 3-0 down in the final set in a hard-fought 2-6 7-6 (7-2) 6-3 win.

It was just Murray’s second tour-level match of the year, having lost to Egor Gerasimov in Montpellier a week ago, and he did well to swerve back-to-back defeats to unfancied opponents.

After the match, the 33-year-old – who was forced to miss the Australian Open after testing positive for coronavirus – confessed he was feeling the strain of competing at the top level, with critics calling for him to end his career.

‘It’s not easy,’ said the former world No. 1. ‘Every time I lose a match I’m getting told to retire, that I should stop playing, that I’m finished and got nothing left or whatever and it’s sad and all of these things.

‘It’s not easy. I feel like I’m playing for my career just now, each time I step on court, which is a motivation in some ways.

Andy Murray of Great Britain during his match against Robin Haase in the 48e ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament at Rotterdam Ahoy on March 1, 2021 in Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Murray came through in three sets (Picture: BSR Agency/Getty)

‘But it also adds a bit of extra stress. There’s a bit of extra doubt there and on top of that I’m playing with a metal hip, which is hard. Trust me, it’s not easy.

‘So it’s a big challenge for me just now and one that I’ll meet head on, but it’s not easy just now. The last few months have been a bit of a struggle.’

Murray – currently ranked 123 in the ATP leaderboard – was the first to admit it was far from his best performance against Haase, the world No. 193 from the Netherlands, but could take positives in finding a way through.

‘From the mental side yeah, I did well to win because I was really struggling with my game for probably about an hour and a half of that match,’ added Murray.

‘I haven’t really felt like that many times in my career, mis-timing the ball, I was…I don’t know. It was very strange. I didn’t quite know what to do out there.

‘When I did feel I was making the right decisions, I was just mis-timing the ball, it wasn’t coming off my racquet like usual.

‘I didn’t return well and then I found a way and actually at the end, I started to play a bit better – so the mental side and the physical side was positive.

‘I moved pretty well and played for two-and-a-half hours and my hips and groin and stuff felt good, so that was positive.

‘But from the tennis side, it was average at best.’

Despite being far from his best, Murray does look physically superior to last season – something that can’t be taken for granted given his long-term hip struggles.

‘I know physically I’m in a better place that I was at then end of 2019, from all of the results I have from all of the gym work and stuff,’ added Murray.

‘When I finished in Antwerp in 2019 I felt good physically and then the next time I got on the court I had an issue with my groin and it took ages for that to get better.

‘Physically I feel good right now, but you don’t know what’s round the corner and that’s the thing I’ve been more anxious and apprehensive about, more than my tennis.’

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Full Post Here - Andy Murray opens up on ‘extra stress’ he’s under after fightback win in Rotterdam
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Andy Murray opens up on ‘extra stress’ he’s under after fightback win in Rotterdam

ROTTERDAM, NETHERLANDS – MARCH 01: (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images) Andy Murray won his first tour-level match since Augu...
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