Chelsea signing Essugo reveals Amorim influence

Chelsea midfielder Dario Essugo has revealed Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim influenced his career as he looks to emulate N'Golo Kante, Michael Essien and Claude Makelele at Stamford Bridge.

The 20-year-old made his debut in the Club World Cup win over Los Angeles FC and is set for a role in Enzo Maresca's squad following his £18.5m move from Sporting.

Essugo made his debut in Portugal aged just 16 and six days old, becoming the youngest player to play for Sporting, while also becoming the youngest Portuguese player to play in the Champions League that same season.

He cited his then-Sporting manager Amorim among his influences: "I made one training session with the first team and the coach liked what he saw and he called me to play.

"He brought me to the first team so he helped me a lot, to understand the game, to reach the level I am here now. I am grateful. He is so demanding. He is a demanding person. He likes to win every time."

Chelsea's reason for signing Essugo is to reduce the workload on star midfielder Moises Caicedo and when asked about comparisons to the Ecuadorian, he continued: "Of course it is good when they compare you with a very big player but it is a mix of both because I want to go my own way to reach the top."

Essugo was produced by Sporting's famed academy, which also brought through Cristiano Ronaldo, and he cited a number of Sporting midfielders, past and present, as influences.

"Manuel Ugarte, Joao Palhinha and Morten Hjulmand were three big players I had the opportunity to learn from. Palhinha is so strong defensively and then Ugarte can play good too. So I learned."

But Essugo also looks up to famous figures from Chelsea's history.

"I want to make my own way but I also like to see Makelele, Essien and Kante, to follow their steps. I'm a defensive midfielder but I can also go forward and play box to box," he added.