Chelsea: Levi Colwill says reading helped him through injury lay-off

Colwill has since taken a very small stake in a digital reading service, which offers 1,000 books free to children.

The service is designed to address a decline in reading, after The Natural Literacy Library found only one in five children read daily and only one in three say they like reading in their spare time. The rate of decline is higher for boys than girls.

Colwill says his childhood experiences encouraged him to get involved.

“I knew I wanted to be a footballer and nothing was going to distract me,” he said.

“I had good parents who kept me on the right path and away from trouble.”

As Barcelona winger and former Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford did with his campaign for free school meals in 2020, Colwill hopes to champion a service he believes can make a meaningful difference.

“When I’ve been injured, I’ve stayed away from social media,” Colwill added.

“But this is something I believe in, so I want to be out there and make sure as many schools sign up and take it on.”

Colwill has returned to what head coach Liam Rosenior describes as “partial training” with Chelsea‘s squad before their Champions League meeting with Paris St‑Germain.