Reece James is not expected to play before the end of December after a scan revealed the extent of the Chelsea right-back’s latest hamstring injury.
The 24-year-old, who has made only four appearances this season, had hoped his fitness woes were behind him after surgery last year. Chelsea’s captain had the procedure with the aim of reviving his career after tearing a hamstring.
But James, who has played only 15 times since being made captain at the start of last season, missed last weekend’s win over Leicester and is likely to be out for at least a month, meaning Chelsea must plan to be without him during the busy festive period.
It is a blow for Enzo Maresca, who has had few opportunities to use James since taking over as head coach last summer. James was suspended at the start of the season and then needed to shake off a niggle. It is a sign of his talent that he came straight into the team once available, starting Chelsea’s 2-1 defeat by Liverpool in October.
Maresca then used James as a left-back against Newcastle. The positive for Chelsea’s head coach is that he has options at right-back. There was surprise when Malo Gusto started instead of James during the draw with Arsenal this month. Gusto has been excellent since joining from Lyon last year.
The frustration for Chelsea is that James is one of the best right-backs in the world. He will have designs on winning back his England place under Thomas Tuchel, who coached him at Chelsea. A knee injury meant James missed the 2022 World Cup, and Gareth Southgate was not willing to risk taking him to Euro 2024.
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Chelsea will look to support James, who has sustained a series of hamstring and knee injuries since a first in December 2021.
