The Blues snapped up the striker as a youth player before he eventually decided to leave to join Liverpool
Rhian Brewster only took 10 seconds to convince a Chelsea scout that the Blues had to sign him at the age of seven, according to his former coach.
Now 20, the England youth star is looking to make an impact in the Premier League this season with Sheffield United – starting with a return to former club Liverpool on Saturday.
Brewster was first spotted as a youngster by Chelsea scout Martin Tyler, playing for Shield Academy in Barkingside, in north-east London.
His former coach Daniel Seymour told the Sun about the 10 seconds of magic which earned the young Brewster the chance to sign for Chelsea.
He said: “I remember Rhian’s first match, I asked him to stand in in midfield. He was clueless and had no idea what I was asking.
“He stood on the edge of the area in this seven-a-side game, looking like he didn’t know what was going on.
“All of a sudden, the kick-off happened and the ball went to him and I thought, ‘What’s he going to do?’
“And the first thing Rhian did in the first ten seconds was take the ball past every single player, walk it in, pick the ball up and put it on the spot again.
“Martin came over and stood next to me and asked where he was from. It was at that exact moment, he decided Rhian had to be a Chelsea player.”
Brewster excelled when sent out on loan to the Championship last season, scoring 11 goals in 22 games for Swansea.
However, he eventually joined Sheffield United in a club-record £23.5 million ($30m) deal this summer, hoping to find regular first-team football in the top flight.
Brewster made a similar step as a teenager, opting to leave Chelsea for Liverpool as he felt his development would be better served at Anfield.
“What happened with Chelsea was Rhian got more frustrated around the developmental chances,” Seymour said.
“He felt like, ‘Is there going to be a pathway for me at Chelsea?’ He felt that wasn’t the case. His mum and dad explained the impact of moving and the massive changes.
“When Liverpool came in, I think there were loads of reasons he wanted to join. Not just around the club, the history, but his dad’s a lifelong fan.”