Reece James ‘stress test’ will help Chelsea planning over injury-hit captain

After 10 months without a Premier League start, determination were kinder places that Reece James mightiness person been handed his Chelsea comeback than astatine the location of leaders Liverpool.

Here, though, was Enzo Maresca, similar a antheral charging disconnected to HMV connected Boxing Day morning, unsure erstwhile his Christmas acquisition voucher mightiness tally out.

James has had comebacks stall before, successful competitory action, yes, but besides successful friendlies and successful training. And so, aft 2 weeks of encouraging mentation during the planetary break, it figures that the Chelsea brag saw acceptable to marque usage of 1 of his champion players portion guaranteed the chance.

There was an constituent of the enactment being forced, with Maresca already missing fractional of his first-choice back-four due to the fact that of the suspensions of Marc Cucurella and Wesley Fofana.

But determination indispensable besides beryllium a privation to stress-test connected Chelsea’s part: for readying purposes, the nine request to cognize however heavy they tin trust connected a subordinate dogged by wounded for 2 seasons now, for the remainder of this marathon campaign.

Still, James inclusion successful the starting XI was a large surprise, fixed helium had not played a competitory infinitesimal each season. The quality was greeted with wide delight by Chelsea supporters erstwhile announced earlier kick-off, and remained, aft a 2-1 defeat, the large affirmative of the day.

There indispensable person been thing reassuring successful the show of James starring this squad out, the academy postgraduate 1 of fewer surviving links to the club’s astir caller trophy occurrence of inactive lone 3 years ago.

Indeed, different than James, Levi Colwill was the lone different subordinate of the Blues starting XI adjacent connected the books astatine the commencement of 2023, and helium was connected indebtedness astatine Brighton astatine the time.

The mean first-team Chelsea subordinate has been astatine the nine for conscionable 537 days. The lone top-flight squad with a shorter mean span is Nottingham Forest, whose recruitment successful that play has been likewise hard to follow. The mean Ipswich subordinate has been in-situ a time longer, and they began that play successful League One.

If determination was apprehension implicit James’s readiness past determination was a settling moment, for subordinate and fans alike, wrong 10 minutes.

In beforehand of the distant section, James chased backmost with Cody Gakpo and not lone reached a unsafe transmission shot first, but past sold the Dutchman a dummy wrong to swivel and instrumentality Chelsea connected the attack. The composure, contrasted with Tosin Adarabioyo’s clumsy tug connected Diogo Jota moments earlier, was noted.

Gakpo did occupation James astatine times, the forward’s rangy stride investigating the robustness of that fickle hamstring arsenic Liverpool got successful down connected respective occasions betwixt taking the pb done Mo Salah and half-time.

The Chelsea captain, too, should person got person to Curtis Jones arsenic the midfielder’s tally from heavy took him done 1 of the gaping crack’s successful the visitors’ precocious enactment and into the abstraction to people the victor beyond. Afterwards, though, Maresca called it a nonaccomplishment of strategy and a justifiable 1 astatine that.

“In the mode we conceded the 2nd goal, we person already avoided this play 5 oregon six goals due to the fact that of the line,” helium explained.

Going forward, James produced 1 oregon 2 deliveries clipped connected that ominous, arcing enactment towards the acold post, but broadly Liverpool defended them well. It astir apt helped James’s origin that Trent Alexander-Arnold, a subordinate to whom helium has and volition beryllium relentlessly compared, had possibly his quietest crippled of the play successful opposition.

Maresca confirmed that James’s withdrawal, connected 53 minutes and moments aft Liverpool had retaken the lead, was pre-planned.

He had bargained for 45 minutes of his skipper, possibly an hr tops, and fixed first-half stoppage clip lasted an age, helium had pushed the precocious bounds of that range.

No uncertainty the representation of pre-season was fresh, erstwhile James started each 5 matches connected the circuit of the USA, lone to injure his hamstring again successful the last minutes earlier helium was owed to travel disconnected against Real Madrid.

Maresca’s absorption of James from present volition beryllium pivotal. The Italian said connected Friday that the defender’s assemblage volition not instrumentality the strain of playing much than erstwhile a week for immoderate clip and whether helium adjacent travels to Athens for Thursday’s Conference League gathering with Panathanikos remains to beryllium seen.

In leaving Wesley Fofana, Cole Palmer and Romeo Lavia retired of their radical signifier squad to negociate workload, Chelsea person shown already they are consenting to instrumentality temptation disconnected the array entirely.

The gentle, midweek way backmost to first-team enactment betwixt present and the adjacent planetary interruption would person seen James look the Greeks and Armenian minnows FC Noah successful the Conference League, arsenic good arsenic a perchance weakened Newcastle successful the Carabao Cup.

Instead, connected the play path, it could beryllium Newcastle astatine Stamford Bridge, followed by Manchester United distant and past the sojourn of Arsenal.

These are large games for Chelsea, ones which arsenic a corporate volition springiness a clearer penetration than 1 nonaccomplishment astatine Anfield into however acold Maresca’s squad person progressed. Should they, and James, travel done them, aims for the remainder of the run tin beryllium reassessed.