Reece James’ injury adds to Chelsea’s woes

James lasted only 27 minutes of Sunday’s 2-0 loss at Everton, forced off with a hamstring problem.

Published : Dec 11, 2023 17:59 IST , LONDON - 2 MINS READ

Reece James of Chelsea is embraced by Mauricio Pochettino, after being substituted off following an injury during the Premier League match between Everton FC and Chelsea FC at Goodison Park.
Reece James of Chelsea is embraced by Mauricio Pochettino, after being substituted off following an injury during the Premier League match between Everton FC and Chelsea FC at Goodison Park. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
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Reece James of Chelsea is embraced by Mauricio Pochettino, after being substituted off following an injury during the Premier League match between Everton FC and Chelsea FC at Goodison Park. | Photo Credit: Getty Images

Problems continue to stack up for Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino, with an injury to captain Reece James the latest concern for the Argentine.

James lasted only 27 minutes of Sunday’s 2-0 loss at Everton, forced off with a hamstring problem.

“Reece felt something in his hamstring. For sure, he’s injured, but we don’t know how serious it is,” said Pochettino, whose side are down in 12th place.

“Of course for us, he is an important player, one of the best fullbacks in the world. We are disappointed because when you believe you can build something and a player like him, who should be really important for us can’t help the team.

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“We go back and assess again in the next few days what is going on with his hamstring.”

James was not the only injury concern after the defeat at Goodison Park, which left Chelsea 18 points behind leader Liverpool and far closer to the bottom three than the top four.

Goalkeeper Robert Sanchez had to be replaced by Djordje Petrovic, while full-back Marc Cucurella also went off injured.

“Robert Sanchez suffered a problem at Manchester United, it was an issue with his knee,” Pochettino said. “He felt something during the second half, that is why he asked for the change. We must hope it is not a big issue.

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“That is the same for Marc Cucurella, who twisted his ankle. We hope that these issues are not big. These are the circumstances we have been dealing with since the start, and it is too much for a young team that needs to have all the elements together if we want to build something solid.”

Chelsea has made its worst start to a Premier League season since 2015-16 when it ended up 10th.

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