Amar’e Stoudemire, the New York Knicks basketballer, was in Miami on Wednesday night to watch Chelsea in action against Real Madrid.
Stoudemire, a 6ft 11ins forward, is a six-time NBA All-Star, and visited Stamford Bridge earlier this year with a number of his team-mates while in London for the regular season league game played at the O2 against the Detroit Pistons, a game the Knicks won 102-87.
He was presented with a Chelsea shirt when we faced Southampton that evening, and was proudly wearing it as he watched us against Real Madrid at the Sun Life Stadium.
‘A buddy of mine who works for the New York Knicks sorted tickets for the game in London in January, so with the team being in Miami where I live in the off-season, I thought I should come and show my support so that’s why I was there,’ the 30-year-old explained. ‘Half the Knicks team went to that match, so they gave us the jerseys and some other memorabilia, but I want the new season’s jersey now!’
Assessing the scenes prior to kick-off in Florida, Stoudemire admitted he was hugely impressed with what he saw.
‘It’s a beautiful turnout. It’s nice to see every sport possible, and to be here watching two great clubs play is phenomenal. It’s great to see,’ he said.
‘I appreciate the work of these other sportsmen 100 per cent. Every time you see athletes and coaches trying to perfect their craft, as an athlete, it’s a beautiful thing to see and I like to show my support where I can.’
You can see Stoudemire speak to Chelsea TV back in January below…