Former Argentina star Andres D'Alessandro confessed that he was over the moon to have been the childhood hero of Chelsea's England midfielder Mason Mount, and vowed to swap his Nacional shirt with the youngster's Blues jersey should the opportunity arise.
D'Alessandro spent six memorable months in the Premier League with Portsmouth in 2006 on loan from Wolfsburg, helping the club avoid relegation to the Championship with his talents on the ball.
And though that spell was brief, it was enough to catch the eye of a young Pompey fan with a big future ahead of him.
"I'm so proud!"
While Mount joined the Chelsea academy at just five years old, he remained an avid follower of his hometown side and for his 10th birthday received a shirt signed by his idol D'Alessandro , while he is now keen to see the Argentine's signature on a Blues top.
"Andres D’Alessandro was one of the players whose shirt I got, and I got it framed on up my wall," he later told the FA's official website .
"He was a player who I always loved when he played, even though it was only for half a season."
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"Really? That makes me so proud!" the 40-year-old, who is now at Uruguayan giants Nacional, said when told by Goal of Mount's admiration for his talents.
"Of course [I'll sign a shirt for him], I would love to. I'll swap shirts with him, I'll swap him a Nacional shirt for his Chelsea shirt. It would make me proud, it would be a pleasure to have his shirt.
"I've seen him because I watch English football, he's a player who has enormous potential. Obviously he's still young but he's shown that he has enormous talent, a player who can use both feet, quick, he scores goals. I hope he keeps growing. He is in one of the best clubs in the world, if he's there, there is a reason for it, but I can see he has amazing ability and the potential to keep growing."
England or Germany?
Tuesday sees two of D'Alessandro's former homes clash as England and Germany meet in the last 16 of Euro 2020.
Mount is a doubt for the match after isolating following his contact with Covid-positive Scotland player Billy Gilmour, but while the Argentine refuses to pick a favourite for the Wembley clash, he hopes the Blues star can make a positive impact.
"I am going to watch if I can, I've watched all of the Euros too. Germany perhaps come into the game a little worse than England, but that doesn't mean anything, when you play a knockout game, they are two world powers, on an individual basis they have players who are stars in their clubs and it will most likely be a great game," he added.
"May the best team win, I don't have a preference. I'd like Mason to score a goal, let's root for him then, we are going to get behind Mason, I hope he can play."
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