Super Bowl-winning Patriot watches Roma training

McClellin, 27, has been in the NFL since 2012, joining the New England Patriots last season and going on to win the national championship against the Atlanta Falcons at the start of 2017.

A big fan of football, when he heard about Roma’s training camp in Boston he reached out to come and watch Eusebio Di Francesco’s group in action.

“I thought it would be a unique opportunity,” McClellin said. “I enjoy watching soccer, and thought it would be great to come down and see some of the best players in the world train.

“I grew up in a city of 1,000 people and we didn’t have soccer, honestly, we were just such a small town. But if I had the opportunity I would have played. I really enjoy watching it, it’s a game I’ve come to love. I try to watch as much as I can.”

At Harvard’s Ohiri Field the Idaho native watched the players go through a variety of training drills in somewhat wet-and-windy conditions, before meeting stars like Radja Nainggolan at the conclusion of the session.

“The way they train is very interesting,” he added. “It’s just so different from how we work in American football. There’s not so much contact, but they are out working hard still and there’s a lot of running – that’s for sure. That’s something I couldn’t do; we run a lot but these guys … it’s a different level. It was really interesting to observe.”

“Gillette Stadium is a really a great place to play, I think it will be a great atmosphere. Two good teams coming in there to play, with great players on each team ... it will be an electric atmosphere for sure.”

- Shea McClelin

The Giallorossi are in action against rivals Juventus on Sunday at Foxborough’s Gillette Stadium, home of the Patriots and a stadium McClellin knows well. Work commitments might prevent him from attending the International Champions Cup finale – the Patriots started their own pre-season on Wednesday – but the linebacker expects a vibrant atmosphere.

“It’s really a great place to play, I think it will be a great atmosphere,” McClellin said. “Two good teams coming in there to play, with great players on each team - some of the best in the world in fact.

“You’ll get a lot of people there and it will be an electric atmosphere for sure.”

Having achieved his dream last season in clinching a Super Bowl ring, McClellin also had some advice for Roma players hoping to achieve similar success themselves this term.

“You have to grind throughout the year, throughout the season,” he said. “You have to be fully committed to everything: to be out there studying, and doing everything you possibly can to get to the level you want to be at.

“It starts here, it starts on Day One – for me on Wednesday, or in fact it starting back in OTAs (organised team activities) in May at the end of the last season.

“It’s a lot of sacrifice, a lot of hard work – but if you want to be the best that’s what it takes.”