The injury problems of Chelsea's captain, Reece James, continue as it was confirmed that the 24-year-old player picked up a knock and will be sidelined for the team's match vs. Leicester City.
James has been dealing with hamstring issues that sidelined him for much of last season. He underwent surgery on Dec. 2023, but the problems reappeared over the summer and once again in recent days, as manager, Enzo Maresca, confirmed.
"Unfortunately he felt something small and we don't want to take any risk for the weekend," Maresca said in his pre-match press conference.
"Hamstring. It's a muscular problem. We don't want to take, as I said, any risks for this weekend. Hopefully it's not something long," Maresca added.
It's a tough blow for Chelsea but especially for James, who has missed over 100 games for the Blues due to injury since the 2020–21 season. James has made only four appearances for Chelsea this season, all coming in the team's last four Premier League games.
Maresca previously said that the idea was to ease James back into action, only playing him one game a week to protect him as much as possible. Despite Chelsea playing it safe over the past month, James has returned to the medical room.
