The smile is wider and more genuine than many have seen on a pitch in years from a Chelsea player. Confetti has been fired into the air, tears of wild happiness have been shed and the world seems like the happiest of places for those with blue-tinted glasses.
The date is May 29, 2021. We are in the Estadio do Dragao and Mason Mount has just won the Champions League. He leans on the advertising hoarding, a cheeky grin on his face and chin resting on his hand. An alert photographer captures the moment of a young footballer who has just become a superstar. At only 22 years old Mount has not only received a Champions League winners medal with his boyhood club, he has played the pass that won the European Cup.
Mount, along with his Cobham graduating peer Reece James, showcases a homegrown pride within this iconic night in Chelsea history. Mount's memorable words on the touchline speak to a player that is strongly connected to his club.
READ MORE: Man Utd ready Mason Mount bid as Liverpool and Arsenal face transfer battle for £85m Chelsea man
"I can't put it into words, it's impossible," Mount told Des Kelly on the touchline in Porto for BT Sport.
"I've played in two finals for Chels and we lost them both, FA Cups, so the way that hurt after the game, I've dreamt as a kid of making the final and winning a trophy. That's what I'm all about, that's what this club is all about, I know it in and out.
"I've been here as a kid, and now, to go all the way in the Champions League. We've played some tough teams and now we're in a final and we won. At this moment in time, we're the best team in the world, so you can't take that away from us."
It is quite extraordinary to project from that moment where Mount finds himself now almost two years later. Sunday afternoon will see Chelsea finally conclude what has been an abject failure of a campaign. At home to Newcastle, Mount is unlikely to play a part on the pitch due to an ongoing pubic bone injury that recently required surgery. It looks increasingly likely this will be the midfielder's last moment in a Chelsea shirt.
With a contract stand-off looking unlikely to meet an amicable resolution, Chelsea's Premier League rivals are circling to try and tempt Chelsea's new ownership to sell with one year left on his contract.
The idea of Mount leaving Chelsea before the age of 25 is quite ludicrous given how much he has already contributed to the club before reaching his prime years.
A two-time player of the season in 2021 and 2022, as voted for by supporters. A vital hand in the Champions League triumph under Thomas Tuchel, scoring in the quarter-final, and semi-final and creating the winner for Kai Havertz in the final. His regular selection from Frank Lampard, Tuchel and Graham Potter reflected his importance and versatility, as have some of his key goals and creative moments.
This season has undeniably been his poorest in a Chelsea shirt, but he is not alone in that wide malaise. And the evidence of the three years previous outweighs one poor campaign, especially when you compare his value amongst some of his peers in the same period of time. Players have come into the club since Mount's 2019 breakthrough for larger price tags and higher expectations and failed to deliver.
Hakim Ziyech, Timo Werner, Havertz, Romelu Lukaku and Raheem Sterling cannot hold a candle to the consistency Mount showed at his best. Even more recently, the quite ludicrous suggestion Joao Felix is worth investing in above Mount, after a completely forgettable loan and barely much output to speak of.
But it is understandable why Mount, apart from a distance in value from the club's offer, sees the grass greener elsewhere. His notorious work rate and versatility have arguably worked against him in more recent times. A player whose humility and self-sacrifice leaned on to cover the inefficiencies of others, probably to his own detriment.
Mount is much, much more than a willing runner. He rarely showboats just for the sake of it, only bringing out those moments of flair when required, but technically he is one of the club's most talented players. Tactically he is one of the club's most intelligent. So much so, that both at the club and international level, coaches have leaned on him so frequently.
A player who has been said to grasp detailed tactical plans and communicate them on the pitch. A trait, not many young players can boast. But that trait has been exploited to cover for Chelsea's recent chaotic approach to squad building. A wild expenditure under the previous and current regimes has created a bloated, incoherent Jackson Pollock painting.
Mount is not the only academy talent to be used to cover up for others. Trevoh Chalobah was used as a right-back whilst Reece James has been injured, Reece James was used as a centre-back to cover for others' flaws, 18-year-old Lewis Hall is looking more competent than a £60million Marc Cucurella, Ruben Loftus-Cheek seemingly deployed everywhere but goalkeeper over the past 18 months. The academy's ability to nurture such talent is admirable, but it becomes an easy crutch when more expensive seniors, who should be better, fail to deliver performances.
Apart from the reality of a bottom-half finish for Chelsea, why wouldn't Mount look across to Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool and see a brighter future for his career? One where he is more likely to gain a role more akin to his preference, an attacking eight. A club with a more coherent idea and settled culture. One that will not see him pass through four coaches in the same number of years. That stability is alluring, along with the chance to compete for the highest honours.
Mount can also be inspired by Tammy Abraham and Fikayo Tomori, two players who left the nest and have soared abroad since. Tomori a star in AC Milan's Scudetto triumph of 2022, and Abraham a beloved striker in Rome, is about to feature in another European final for Jose Mourinho.
He could remain at the club he loves, but what's to say Pochettino will last that long? What's to say Mount is once again shifted into an unfavourable role in the pursuit of short-term needs? Mount's decline this year is probably a sign of exhaustion, passing 50 appearances for Chelsea in 2019/20, 2020/21 and 2021/22 not including the strain of international breaks, a European Championships and World Cup.
The pain from some Chelsea fans to see Mount depart will probably be fuelled in toxic ways, especially on social media, where the saddest part of Mount's Chelsea career has been found. Even if online abuse is not limited to Chelsea fans, the actions of purported fans throughout the years towards Mount have been nothing short of despicable. And do not take the pathetic argument of his performances this season contributing to it, he was getting abused when he was leading the club to a European Cup.
The other toxic element here is the recent trend of contract negotiations being played out online, with a steady stream of non-update updates, that only fuel the speculation and lead to unhealthy tribalism. Already some may question Mount's loyalty to Chelsea, without understanding the nuances of contract discussions or what is being offered. It is very easy and convenient for a club in these situations to paint the player as an antagonist: just look back at the way Andreas Christensen was perceived.
Mount can easily ask one of his current peers Raheem Sterling to recount the bombardment of abuse and media noise when he dared to leave Anfield in 2015. Given the media's need for 24/7 transfer stories 365 days a year, contract negotiations, which previously would play out behind closed doors, now become another part of the narrative. In the case of social media, it becomes another battleground in which to hurl bile and make outlandish remarks.
Mount is not the first and last to reveal this growing trend. But it is not helping discourse, especially when reports of a player daring to reject a proposal as akin to treason seems to be the go-to reaction.
Jody Morris, whose coaching was key in his development at Cobham and witnessed his senior breakthrough as assistant to Frank Lampard put it best. "If Mason Mount walks out of Chelsea, it would be sad, people are questioning his commitment to Chelsea Football Club, it's bizarre."
"He was just pipped for player of the year when I was there by Kovacic, then he won the player of the year the season after, this season, who has played well for us apart from Silva?"
Mauricio Pochettino will not be aided by losing Mount. Not only because of his talent and potential use in the Argentine's system, but from those inside Stamford Bridge after this year, need to be reunited and feel a sense of positive energy again. Losing Mount, a beloved figure to a rival is a tough pill to swallow. It is also maybe beginning to reflect a decline in Chelsea's place on the footballing food chain.
Although players have departed to rivals such as Manchester United and Arsenal in recent years, nearly all of them have left at the end of their careers or after their peak had been reached. Jorginho is the latest example, following Petr Cech, Willian, David Luiz and Nemanja Matic. It is easier to swallow when you have attained the best years from a talent, for Mount that would not be the case.
Mount favouring United has a tinge of irony given Marcus Rashford's brilliant revival under Erik ten Hag. Rashford is the perfect antidote to the ludicrous suggestion Chelsea would lose nothing by selling Mount. Here was an English international written off by even his own fans 12 months ago, a new coach, a more suitable role and rediscovered confidence and Rashford has found a higher level than before. The logic for United and ten Hag, Mount could do the same at Old Trafford.
For those who doubt Mount's talent, why are all his suitors from England's big six? Clearly, to Arsenal, Liverpool and United the years of evidence outweigh the months of frustration this term, aided by the context of Chelsea's very public failings under new ownership and an undeniably unstable environment. How was any player supposed to thrive in this?
Losing a talent like Mount, who has been one of the stars of recent years for supporters will be the cherry on top of a tragic season. It also from a representation standpoint, will not aid a hierarchy that has quickly lost faith from fans who have experienced the worst season in nearly 30 years.
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