Graham Potter Of Chelsea Gives Update On Reece James

The manager of Chelsea, Graham Potter has affirmed that the club’s right-back, Reece James is in a “good place” despite experiencing one of the toughest years in his football career.

Recall that Reece James has managed to make just seven Premier League appearances so far in the 2022-2023 season due to his battle with a knee injury.

Due to the injury, James missed significant parts of the first half of the season and subsequently missed the 2022 FIFA World Cup with England which was a big blow to his football career.

After it was confirmed that the injury he sustained during a Champions League game against AC Milan on 11 October would keep him out of England’s World Cup squad, Reece James said he was “devastated” for not making it to Qatar.

Coach Potter said: “It was a World Cup and they come around every four years. So when you’re young, the perspective is not so easy to get.

“You are young and you want to play. That’s understandable. It’s the same for Reece, [England left-back] Ben Chilwell, and [France midfielder] N’Golo Kante. It’s brutal really to have to deal with.

“You can try to help them and give them a bit of perspective but in the end, it has to come from them, their families, and those people close to them.”

File photo of Graham Potter having a word with Reece James during a training session.

Ahead of Chelsea’s Premier League game against Bournemouth scheduled to kick off at 18:30 today, December 27, coach Potter confirmed that James is back to full fitness.

According to the coach, the 23-year-old English left-back has resumed his workouts, and will be available for today’s game.

The coach added: “I have to say he is in a good mood, he is in a good place. He has trained with us, is training well, and is a good team-mate. He has dealt with it well.

“It is not too much you can say. You say it will get better with time and you have to focus on the things you can control. But there is nothing you can say to a player that will make it get better.

“He is missing the World Cup. What can I say? All I can do is acknowledge that it is upsetting, that whatever he is feeling is normal and help him move forwards.

“It was a challenging period for him. It was a challenging period for all the players. You have to think on some level there is an effect there. They’re only human.”