Two were teammates at Southampton…
Arsenal star Calum Chambers has admitted he once cleaned the boots of now Liverpool striker Rickie Lambert when the two were playing at Southampton.
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The Gunners defender even claims that the task helped turn him into an England international.
Despite a £16 million move in the summer to the Emirates doing little to dent the confidence of Chambers, the centre-back says doing a bit of hard graft did wonders for him as a burgeoning player.
“I think it’s the grounding that you’re given as a young player at Southampton,” he told the Daily Star.
“If anyone steps out of line or comes in and thinks they’re bigger than they are, they are told straightaway. Everyone’s feet are kept firmly on the ground.
“I cleaned Rickie Lambert’s boots for a couple of seasons – sometimes on cold winter nights.
Chambers says the youth players at St Mary’s were each assigned a senior star in the first team whose boots they had to clean every day and that this was a key way of grounding the youngsters from the off.
“It was good for us. You wanted to get to the stage where you had a boot boy cleaning your boots, so it was something else that made you want to push on more.
“Being called up for England was a huge honour. When I went away with England for the first time, it helped me to have so many guys from Arsenal there.
“I think I’ve matured a lot since I joined Arsenal. I’ve worked on my game and I’ve gained a lot of experience both in playing in the Premier League and in Europe.”
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