Chelsea boss Graham Potter admits he won’t know the extent of Reece James’ injury for up to another 48 hours after the right-back limped off during the second half of the Blues’ Champions League clash with AC Milan on Tuesday night. And the defender is now a doubt for England’s World Cup squad. Chelsea produced a stellar display at the San Siro as they won the match 2-0.
James has been one of his side’s best performers over the last couple of seasons and has started the current campaign in fine form once again. On Saturday, the England international was only deemed fit enough to start on the bench when the Blues took on Wolves in the Premier League.
He returned to the starting line-up for Tuesday’s showdown with Milan and caused the home defence all sorts of problems as he darted forward and attempted to make things happen. But he was forced off on the hour mark after landing heavily on his right leg.
With the start of the World Cup less than six weeks away, there are now doubts over whether the 22-year-old will be fit enough to take his place in the Three Lions squad. Gareth Southgate has named James in his starting line-up for England’s last four matches and clearly thinks a lot of the player. So the manager will be desperate to have him in his preliminary squad when he announces it next Thursday.
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The spot kick came after former Blues defender Fikayo Tomori was sent off when he was adjudged to have pulled Mason Mount back when through on goal. And his dismissal ultimately killed off the contest as Chelsea went on to dominate.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang added his side’s second goal 11 minutes before the break after running on to a clever pass from Mount. And the Blues produced a professional performance after the interval to secure the three points.
Chelsea’s victory at the San Siro means they are now top of Group E after four matches. And they can qualify for the knockout stages of the competition if they beat RB Salzburg in Austria later this month ahead of their final clash with Dinamo Zagreb at the start of November.
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