Chelsea captain Reece James ruled out of Leicester City clash after suffering fresh injury setback
Published 21/11/2024 at 14:03 GMT
Chelsea will be without their captain and right-back Reece James for their away clash against Leicester City as the Premier League returns on TNT Sports on discovery+. James, 24, only returned in October from a hamstring issue but has been ruled out after suffering a setback. Blues boss Enzo Maresca admitted it was just a “small” issue that he hopes won’t keep him out for long.
Cole Palmer scores against Burnley for Chelsea
Video credit: TNT Sports
Chelsea captain Reece James has been ruled out of Saturday's away trip to Leicester City – live on TNT Sports and discovery+ – after suffering a fresh injury blow.
The 24-year-old only returned in October after missing the start of the season but is now set for another spell on the sidelines.
Ahead of the return of the Premier League following the international break, Blues boss Enzo Maresca confirmed he would be without his captain and first-choice right-back.
"We have, for sure, just one injured player and that is Reece," Maresca said. "Unfortunately, he felt something small and we do not want to take a risk with him at the weekend. He is the only one for sure who is not available for this weekend.
"The rest, some of them are better and some of them are a doubt, plus we need to wait because today is the first session we do with all of the players from international duty so we will see after today's session."
He added: "It is his hamstring with Reece, so a muscle problem. We don't want to take any risk with this weekend so hopefully it is not something long."
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There are also question marks about the fitness of Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill, both of whom withdrew from international duty as England claimed wins over Greece and Ireland in the Nations League.
"To be honest, after we played Arsenal I left for one week [on holiday] so I don't know about the conversations between the club and the international teams," Maresca continued.
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"As I said, some of them are better, some we will test today. But overall, for sure, they are much better."
Chelsea, who sit third in the table, drew with Manchester United and Arsenal before the international break and will be looking to pick up a first domestic win in November when they travel to the King Power Stadium.
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