It wasn't until October 2020 that Burstow entered the professional game. He had spent time in the youth system at Welling United and was with Maidstone United when, after a ten-week trial, he was offered a scholarship by Charlton Athletic.

Burstow accepted the opportunity to join the League One side. 'I was 16 at the time and had been training with the first team at Maidstone,' he recalls while on our summer tour of the U.S. 'So I already had that glimpse of men’s football. I felt ready.'

After less than a year with Charlton, Burstow was handed his first-team debut. It came off the bench against Crawley Town in the EFL Trophy. He scored with his first touch in the professional game.

'A good start,' Burstow says with a smile – and five more goals followed in 23 appearances for Charlton. Then came his move to Chelsea at the end of the 2022 January transfer window. It was not one he expected.

‘It happened quite quickly,' he explains. 'It was only the last week of the window we actually took it seriously because we didn’t know if it was just rumours.'

In joining Chelsea, Burstow stepped away from the frenetic world of the Football League. It was a choice made to continue his progress, even if an adjustment period was required with our Development Squad.

'With Charlton, I was coming up against 30-year-old centre-backs and the main thing they had was that physical approach,' he explains.

'Playing in Premier League 2 with Chelsea, it was very different. Defenders were gaining that physical development but were technically very good. So it took me a little while to work out.

'That was one of the reasons I wanted to move, though. I wanted to continue to develop because I was still young, I had that room to improve. It was a no-brainer in that sense as it has opened up a new pathway for me for the future.’

Burstow established himself as our Development Squad's first-choice forward last season and impressed. There were ten goals in Premier League 2, another in the EFL Trophy, and an improvement in his all-round game.

It's ensured Burstow has held his own when called upon by Pochettino during our summer tour of the USA – and his guided headed finish against Dortmund certainly showcased his striker's instinct.

Yet there was a point Burstow was more focused on keeping goals out rather than scoring them.

He says: ‘When I was younger, I actually played in goal for a while! I started out as a winger but played all over the pitch because I was the kid in my team that could kick the ball far and had some sort of technique.

'We had a good team but I got a bit bored because we were winning every game, so I decided to play in goal for a season. It was alright actually but there was one problem: the team was still very good so I ended up just standing around in matches not doing much!

'So naturally I got bored and wanted to come back out onto the pitch. I played as a winger and as a No.10 and it was actually only five seasons ago that I started to play as a striker.

'From there, Charlton signed me and then came Chelsea. So, I’m definitely a striker now.’