Five months ago, Tyrone Mings was working as a mortgage advisor, helping customers on to the first step of the housing ladder.

Five months ago, Tyrone Mings was working as a mortgage advisor, helping customers on to the first step of the housing ladder.

Playing in non-league for Evo-Stik South side Chippenham Town, the son of Chelsea scout Adie had moved there from Gloucestershire side Yate Town in order to “put myself in the shop window a bit more”.

The switch paid rich dividends for Mings who climbed a rung of his own footballing ladder when he made his Football League debut for the Blues in their 2-0 defeat at Burnley on Saturday.

A regular fixture for the club’s under-21s side since manager Mick McCarthy swooped for him, Mings first experience of professional football was unforgettable.

“I think my last game for Chippenham was away at Stourbridge,” said Mings, referring to his team’s 2-1 defeat, played in front of 335 spectators.

“The most people I had ever played in front of before Saturday had been 500, so to play in front of thousands was unbelievable.

“I think I did well and was happy with my performance.

“The manager told me before the game to go out and relax and enjoy myself, and when it came to the game, it didn’t faze me.”

The youngster put in a composed display on the pitch, playing at left-back, and was equally as grounded when facing the media for the first time after the game at Turf Moor.

Mings has not followed the conventional route into football and that showed after the game with the former Southampton academy humbled by the chance he had been given.

“It’s been a crazy last six months. In December I was a mortgage advisor playing for a Chippenham,” said Mings, who played in the same youth team as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain at Southampton.

I moved from Yate to Chippenham to put myself in the shop window a bit more, but did I think I would be playing in the Championship at the end of the season? No. Did I ever think the opportunity would arise? I hoped so.

“I still speak to some of the people that I worked with (as a mortgage advisor) and they are gobsmacked by what has happened, it’s not really a normal career progression is it?

“But I am loving every minute of it. I have been given an opportunity and want to play as much as I can.”

Mings played in defence, with Aaron Cresswell moving into midfield, and while his performance earned him some well-deserved headlines, his exploits off the pitch have already made him a cult hero.

Back in March, Mings showed his compassionate side, giving “skint” fan Tris Monk two tickets for the home game against Bolton, after a conversation on Twitter.

The defender has not enjoyed many of the trappings some of his more fortunate peers, such as Oxlade-Chamberlain may have had, and that gesture proved the point.

“It’s always nice to give something back to help others,” he added.

“I am grounded and my progression isn’t how other people have done it.

“I have seen the other side by working full time and playing part time, so when I play now, I just work as hard as possible and it doesn’t faze me.”