It was a day out to remember for a group of former students as they were invited to meet Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho.

The former Cardinal Vaughan pupils are now players and coaches for Old Vaughanians Football Club, which runs five teams and trains at the Linford Christie Sports Centre at Wormwood Scrubs in Shepherd’s Bush.

They had the privilege of meeting Mourinho and defender Ryan Bertrand at Chelsea’s Cobham training ground in Surrey to quiz them on life in the Barclays Premier League, taking in a special training session with Blues’ coaches and being given an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of the facility.

The special experience was laid on by Premier League sponsors Barclays, which is also runs more than 200 community sports sites, including the Linford Christie.

Speaking about the visit, Old Vaughanians FC coach Tony Murphy said: “It was a great honour for some of OVFC’s coaches and players to be invited by Barclays to visit Chelsea’s training ground in Cobham. We thoroughly enjoyed touring the ground and being coached by some of Chelsea’s senior staff.

“Most of all, however, we were thrilled to meet Jose Mourinho and Ryan Bertrand and to have had the opportunity to ask them questions. Everyone at Cobham, from the players to the organisers of the event, was so hospitable and helpful. We look forward to imparting our newfound knowledge to our club members.”

Barclays’ David Wheldon said: “This season Barclays is saying thank you to community heroes across the UK, who help make the Barclays Premier League what it is today. We invited a group of volunteer coaches and players from grassroots club Old Vaughanians FC to a special event at Chelsea as a thank you for all their hard work in the community.”