Chalobah: World Cup is number one in my career

Trevoh Chalobah has described his FIFA World Cup 2026 opportunity as the 'number one' moment of his career after years of dreaming about representing England on football's biggest stage.

The Chelsea defender was called up to the squad last week as a replacement for Tino Livramento, who was unfortunately ruled out of the tournament with a calf injury suffered during training.

Chalobah’s call-up arrived almost eight years after he posted a picture of the World Cup with the message ‘One day #Believe’ on social media, having been inspired by the Three Lions' run to the semi-finals of the competition in 2018.

And with a group stage game against Ghana first up for the once-capped 26-year-old on Tuesday, he has reflected on his incredible journey to the top of the international game.

"I remember I was on loan at Ipswich that year and that was when the World Cup was in Russia," Chalobah said, explaining his now-viral tweet.

"And it has always been a dream and that day I decided to tweet it [the World Cup message]. I obviously believed one day hopefully I'd make it.

"For me this is number one in my career, especially because I didn't expect it. I think that is the beautiful thing about it, when you didn't expect it and to get a call like that shows that obviously when you think all is lost or it's not going to happen, that tweet came true."

Chalobah's only cap so far came in a friendly against Senegal in June 2025, but he has maintained a strong relationship with Thomas Tuchel following their time together at Chelsea.

Asked about his history with England's head coach, Chalobah said: "Yeah, when I was at Chelsea, he tried to bring me to Bayern [Munich]. We've always had that special relationship.

"He's the one that gave me my debut in 2021 in my breakthrough season at Chelsea. My England debut as well. So we've always had that.

"We have that strong connection. Yeah, he's really fun! When I was at Chelsea, he was really demanding, which helped me. We have that really fun, banter relationship and I love it."

Having previously spent time away from Chelsea on loan before returning to become a key player at Stamford Bridge, Chalobah is no stranger to earning opportunities through hard work and having the right attitude.

Should another one present itself in North America this summer, the versatile defender is ready to step up again and grasp it with both hands.

"In my career I've always been coming in – maybe not seen as playing – but then I always end up managing to play," he added.

"It starts in training, just give my all, make sure I'm ready when called upon and I believe I can play a big part.

"I know the player I am. I know how far I've come. I know what I've been through, so I can't allow those moments to define who I am, or just have that disbelief - I have that faith.

"Faith has been one of my key things. Because of my faith, I know that those moments won't define me or who I am and I know what I've been through. I just use those moments as fuel to always prove people wrong and I love it."