Olympian says ex-Dons midfielder was 'levels and levels above'

The former Olympic sprinter played alongside some big names in the Chelsea academy, but one stood out above the rest

Sprinter Adam Gemili admitted he was in awe of former MK Dons midfielder Josh McEachran when the pair played together in Chelsea’s youth system growing up.

Adam Gemili was a part of Chelsea's academy for nearly a decade | Getty Images for World Athletics

placeholder image — Adam Gemili was a part of Chelsea's academy for nearly a decade | Getty Images for World Athletics

The 30-year-old former 200m European champion turned his attention to track and field after spending nearly a decade in the Stamford Bridge academy, where he played alongside the likes of Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Nathanial Chalobah.

But amongst the glittering names Gemili played with, it would be McEachran who wowed him the most.

Josh McEachran spent two-and-a-half years as an MK Dons player, making 100 appearances for the club | Jane Russell

Now 31, McEachran spent two-and-a-half years at Stadium MK, racking up 100 appearances for the club in the centre of the park as a lynchpin midfielder.

Brought in on a free transfer following his release from Birmingham City, McEachran played under Russell Martin initially before becoming a key member of the squad for Liam Manning the following year. But after missing out on promotion in 2021/22, Dons were relegated the following season, and McEachran departed to reunite with Manning at Oxford United last summer.

While Manning moved on to take charge of Bristol City, McEachran remained at the Kassam Stadium and helped guide the U’s to promotion to the Championship, alongside other former Dons Josh Murphy and Jamie Cumming.

During his time at Chelsea though, McEachran was the benchmark for Gemili, who aspired to play like the midfielder.

“I was in Chelsea’s academy for eight years," he told talkSPORT. “So my age group, we always used to mix the year above, the year below and the guys that you might remember. So the one who was the most talented person I've ever seen was a midfielder called Josh McEachran.

“He was just honestly levels and levels and levels above everyone. When I was that age, watching Josh McEachran, I was like, how am I ever going to get to that level?

"My way of playing football was (that) I was very fast. This guy was just operating at his own pace. He controlled the game so slowly. So he was super special.

“He was just so good from such a young age. I think if you ask anyone from his team or my team or from that era, they'd give you the same answer, because he was just fantastic.”