Demba Ba on Turkey & Stevie G

The former Chelsea man is in Turkey at Istanbul Basaksehir – and hopes people will finally stop discussing Stevie G’s slip

You’ve been switching between sides in Turkey and China over the last few seasons. Why did you decide to join Basaksehir last year?

I thought it was a good opportunity to come back to Turkey – I knew Istanbul really well and I like it here. In terms of values and tolerance, it’s one of the best countries I’ve lived in. Basaksehir have been aiming to win the title for the last couple of years, and I thought, ‘ OK, I’ll join them and try to help’. The club hasn’t got a big history, but it has to start somewhere. We’re still in the Europa League, too – we won our first leg against Copenhagen in the last 16, so we could reach the quarter- finals when we play the second in August.

You spent three years in the Premier League, but a lot of clubs turned you down before. How hard was that?

After spending my formative years in Le Havre, I lived in Paris along with my mother and six siblings. We were short on money and it was very tough – my mother had to fight to provide for us. I was playing for local side Montrouge, and had trials with Auxerre and Lyon. Later I went to England, with Barnsley, Gillingham, Swansea and Watford. The answer was always no. They all told me I had good qualities, but that they had similar players. None were willing to take a chance on me. But even when clubs kept saying, ‘ No, no, no’, I wasn’t dejected. Some footballers would lose their motivation, but I never lost mine. It was hard, but life isn’t easy.

After spells in Belgium and Germany, you joined West Ham. How did you feel when you arrived?

I’d always wanted to play in England’s Premier League. I remember looking at my arm during the first game, and seeing the Premier League badge on it. I was like, ‘ You’re now in the Premier League, man... you’re in the Premier League!’’ I loved it, and I had a really good rapport with Carlton Cole. I liked living in London, too.

You had a great time at Newcastle, then moved to Chelsea. How do you look back on your time at Stamford Bridge today?

I had some ups and downs. It started pretty well – I scored two goals on my debut, and had an impact in my first few months. However, that was less the case after Jose Mourinho returned as boss. It was a more difficult time as I was left on the bench. I’d never really experienced that before.

Soon after Mourinho’s appointment, you could have joined Arsenal. How close was that to happening?

Really close. I was at my house in Paris, having a day off, when I got a phone call from Arsene Wenger – he asked if I’d come back to London for a medical. I woke up at 9am on transfer deadline day, jumped on a train, got to London, but then it never happened. Arsenal made a couple of signings on the same day [ Mesut Özil and Emiliano Viviano] and Mourinho chose to block the deal, as he didn’t want to help make one of Chelsea’s competitors stronger.

How disappointing was that?

I had to find a way of dealing with not starting many matches. But when you don’t play and you’re surrounded by players who do, the negativity comes. Near the end of that season, I decided to stop moaning, work hard until the the season was done, then move on. When I stopped complaining, I started to score and play more. I remember having a chat with Mourinho once the season was finished, when he asked me to stay for another year. But I had already decided to go.

You scored a dramatic winner in the Champions League quarter- finals against PSG, then the famous goal at Liverpool when Steven Gerrard slipped and Liverpool lost the title...

Being a young kid from the hood in Paris, growing up in poverty and then scoring the goal that took Chelsea to the Champions league semi- finals,

that felt like a great achievement. At Anfield, I only saw the opportunity and the ball – I wasn’t thinking about what could happen. It was just a chance to score and help my team win. People keep talking about it – social media is big, so sometimes it’s mentioned – but I don’t pay attention. It wasn’t only the fact that Liverpool didn’t win the title, it was the fact that Gerrard didn’t. But now that Liverpool have finally won it, perhaps things will chill a bit!

You played with Mohamed Salah at Chelsea. What was he like?

We had a great connection. He’d come from Switzerland and was pretty shy – Chelsea is a club where you need to have some personality straight away to succeed. He was still young, and it’s very difficult coming into that kind of dressing room to have a direct impact. I tried to help him as much as I could, and we prayed together sometimes. We’re still in contact now and again.

You have invested in American team San Diego 1904 with Eden Hazard – how’s that going?

I began putting things in place a few years ago, then offered shares to some of my friends in football: Eden Hazard, Yohan Cabaye and Moussa Sow. Our main goal is to develop young players, because America has fantastic talent. We’re in the third division with crowds of about 3,000. Coronavirus has meant we’ve had to carry on paying the staff despite having no income, but I think we’ve made something that will work.

You’re 35 now – are you going to be a coach when you retire?

I’m actually thinking more about the management side of things – I like the idea of being a director of football, but first I want to complete a masters. I’m already studying player development – you may have seen in The Last Dance, about Michael Jordan, how players can get themselves to an even higher level. You need to understand how players function. Once you work that out, you can help them go further.