NATHAN AKE CLAIMS he was left “broken” by Jose Mourinho at Chelsea, with the Portuguese shunting him down the pecking order at Stamford Bridge for no apparent reason.

The Dutch defender moved to West London in 2011 as a 16-year-old. He was held in high regard and tipped to enjoy a bright future with the Blues, with senior opportunities coming his way in 2012-13 under Rafa Benitez.

Ake was expected to kick on from that point, but saw his career path diverted once Mourinho returned for a second spell at the helm.

The former Chelsea boss found no regular role in his plans for a versatile performer and, following loan spells at Reading, Watford and Bournemouth, a permanent departure was made in 2017.

Ake left to link up with the Cherries after making only seven Premier League appearances and with a change of scenery required in order to overcome the struggles of his time under Mourinho.

“I went to the first team at Chelsea and played under Rafa Benitez and I always thought, ‘why is everyone saying setbacks are coming because everything is going up, up, up?’” Ake told The Telegraph.

“The season after Benitez left I thought, ‘this is going to be my season’. Then Jose Mourinho came and, without training, I got dropped into the second team. That was one of the toughest things for me, mentally. I was quite broken.

“Everything was going great, I played a few games, I was young player of the year and then I was in the reserves again.”

Ake has been linked with a return to Stamford Bridge since departing, with his form at Bournemouth catching the eye.

Manchester United and Tottenham have also been credited with interest in the talented 24-year-old, but Eddie Howe has regularly sought to play down the transfer talk.

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