He wears the same outfit he did the day before as he makes his way to the Alderley Edge hotel, a location he has all-too-familiarized, to speak with Mail Sport. The 32-year-old is detached and worn out. When he was a confident young prodigy, he stood head and shoulders above the crowd at Chelsea's academy.
The setting, one of the wealthiest communities in the North West of England where some of the biggest stars from the Premier League call home, contradicts his dismal circumstances, but Mellis has little control over where he finds solace these days.
He doesn't have a house, a car, or a job. He has depended on the generosity of family and friends for the last 18 months, whether they are providing couches to stay on or recognizing the
a childhood friend who lives just a few minutes away and is assisting Mellis in regaining some normalcy in his life.
Last night, it was a friend's apartment in the heart of Manchester. Tonight, he has to decide between staying at the hotel once more (his friend will pay the £95 payment) and returning to his brother's house in Nottingham. He keeps looking for a place to lay his head down.
He claims, "I really just spend every day thinking about where to go." Despite the fact that I have family, I don't really want to rely on them. I want to attempt to take care of myself. It has been challenging. I make an effort not to dwell on it too much. I simply attempt to move on.
"If I wasn't chosen or was upset, I would just go out and drink." You're messing yourself up more than you're messing up Chelsea.
Mellis' career, which saw him leave Chelsea to join Barnsley in the Championship and later play for seven other clubs across the Football League, was marked by alcohol becoming a recurring theme.
"While I was still competing in the league, I had no regrets." I assumed I was where I am, he continues.
"Now that I'm not playing, you have more time to reflect," I said. You must feel bad about that. I'm reminded of this by the number of individuals who approach me and ask, "Oh my God, what happened to you?"
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