Chelsea have provided an update on the fitness of defender Reece James.
The club captain recently took to social media to suggest to Blues supporters that he would 'see them soon' having failed to make a competitive appearance in 2024-25.
James had played an active part in pre-season, featuring regularly in the United States, before sustaining a hamstring injury prior to the opening Premier League fixture against Manchester City.
To a certain extent, Enzo Maresca would not have been overly concerned due to the 24-year-old needing to complete a three-match domestic suspension before he could return to top-flight action after the September international break.
However, his recovery period has taken longer than initially anticipated, leading to Maresca admitting that his comeback had 'been delayed'.
© Imago
How have Chelsea had to say?
James has since had another international break to try to get himself back into contention for a return to first-team action ahead of the winter period.
A report over the weekend indicated that there was a possibility that the academy graduate could feature on the grass at Cobham over the coming days.
On Monday afternoon, the West Londoners took to social media to show that James had participated in team training earlier in the day.
Back in team training. pic.twitter.com/kMBkAJc3eg
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) October 14, 2024
The development is a huge boost for Maresca and the club in general given the persistent injury issues that James has sustained over recent seasons.
Nevertheless, as has been the case under different managers and medical teams, fans should not expect James to be rushed back into action.
Possible comeback games?
Providing that everything goes to plan with the latter stages of his recovery, James may come under consideration for the Conference League fixture at Greek side Panathinaikos on October 24.
Six days later, Chelsea make the trip to Newcastle United in the EFL Cup fourth round, another match that could be targeted by Maresca and James.
Malo Gusto, Axel Disasi and Wesley Fofana are expected to remain as the only players in contention to play at right-back in Premier League games for the foreseeable future.
Darren Plant
