Forget the stereotype of bland chicken and broccoli. Premier League footballers are increasingly enjoying restaurant-quality meals at home, thanks to a growing trend of hiring private chefs to manage their evening nutrition.
The Rise of the Football Chef
While Manchester City's Erling Haaland, with his 6,000-calorie daily intake and taste for heart and liver, offers a unique glimpse into a player's diet, he is very much the exception. Most elite footballers are time-poor and require meticulously planned nutrition, leading to a niche industry boom.
Private chefs, offering services from cooking in a player's home to preparing bespoke meal kits, are now a key part of the performance puzzle. Tommy Cole, a private chef with seven years of experience, has been working full-time with London-based Premier League players since the start of this year.
He personally cooks for one client every weekday evening and regularly prepares meals for five others, documenting his culinary creations on social media.
Gourmet Fuel for Elite Performance
The food is far from basic. Tommy's dishes showcase a balance between high-end cuisine and sports science. His social media features stunning plates like chicken breast with a chicken bonbon, chicken jus, charred corn, corn puree and garlic mashed potato, or bao buns filled with duck, prawns, pickled vegetables and coleslaw.
This is a significant shift from his previous global work. "It can be a bit tricky because you've got two kinds of minds: the chef head which wants to use more butter or whatever to make it as tasty as possible but the nutritionist brain wants to consider the client's goals," Tommy explained to Mirror Football.
He emphasises that a balance is crucial: "You can definitely get a balance where the food is really good, top quality but still healthy."
Collaboration with Club Nutritionists
The process is highly collaborative. Tommy works directly with the nutritionist at his main client's Premier League club to ensure every meal supports their athletic objectives.
"Players are at the club for most of the day and get the bulk of their meals there, which are controlled by the club," he said. "It's normally just evening meals that are catered for by themselves, a family member or a chef."
While the player is the ultimate client, the menu is "informed by the nutritionist." This partnership results in diverse and flavourful meals. Pre-match, a player might enjoy a carbohydrate-rich Korean fried rice with gochujang, vegetables and prawns, while other days could feature a teriyaki confit duck leg with edamame beans, asparagus and noodles.
Tommy attributes the growth of his profession to a greater awareness of sports science. "Particularly after Covid... over the last 20 or so years, there's been a lot of developments in the sports nutrition world and the awareness of nutrition for performance has become bigger so players have become more switched on."
For today's elite footballer, peak performance no longer means sacrificing taste, proving that you can indeed have your gourmet cake and perform at the highest level too.
