Chelsea captain Reece James has suffered a new injury setback after being ruled out of Saturday’s clash against Leicester with a hamstring problem.
James had only returned to action in October after missing the start of the season.
However, Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca revealed on Thursday that the 24-year-old England right-back will not be available for the trip to the King Power Stadium for this weekend’s Premier League match.
Maresca hopes the issue won’t keep James sidelined for too long, but given the Chelsea captain’s recent history of injury woes, the Italian is unwilling to take any risks.
“Reece, unfortunately, felt something minor, and we don’t want to take any chances this weekend,” Maresca told reporters.
“Hopefully, it won’t be something long-term. He felt something, so he has to be out, and we’ll see how it goes. It’s his hamstring, a muscle problem.”
James has struggled to maintain fitness for much of the last two seasons, but Maresca remains confident he can eventually overcome his injury-prone reputation.
“For sure,” he added. “But at the moment, it’s not happening.”
Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill pulled out of England duty during the international break due to fitness concerns, while Maresca also has doubts over Romeo Lavia, Malo Gusto, Wesley Fofana, and Jadon Sancho.
“Some of them are better, and some of them we’ll test today,” he said of Chelsea’s walking wounded.
England captain Harry Kane criticised the nine players who opted out of international duty, insisting that playing for the Three Lions should take priority over everything else.
There were suggestions that club managers had encouraged their players to stay away to avoid injuries at such a busy time of the season.
Asked whether he had been in contact with the England camp over the withdrawals of Palmer and Colwill, Maresca said: “To be honest, we played Arsenal, and then I left for a week.”
Maresca will be making his first return to Leicester since guiding the Foxes to promotion from the Championship last season before leaving to replace Mauricio Pochettino at Stamford Bridge.
It will be an emotional occasion for Maresca, who said: “First of all, I’m excited and also thankful.
“It was a fantastic season because I met great people, and in terms of players, it was fantastic.
“We had a great connection between the players and staff, and this is something you need to create when you want to achieve something important.
“I will be thankful to them for the rest of my life; we have a special bond.”
AFP
