Reece James out for four weeks after suffering injury setback as Chelsea star opens up on ‘toughest year to date’
REECE JAMES out for four weeks with a knee injury, Chelsea have confirmed.
The Chelsea full-back got injured again on his return to action against Bournemouth yesterday after two and a half months on the sidelines.
James, 23, lasted just 53 minutes of the 2-0 win, having to be substituted for Cesar Azpilicueta after injuring the same knee that ruled him out of the World Cup.
In a statement posted to their official website, Chelsea confirmed that the England international underwent a scan this morning to determine the extent of the injury.
It read: “Scan results have regrettably confirmed a setback for the 23-year-old, with Reece now set to be ruled out for up to a month.”
James’ layoff is set to be shorter than initially feared – but as it’s the same knee that he injured back in October, any further setback could see him require surgery.
He had been desperate to return in time to make Gareth Southgate’s 26-man World Cup squad.
But James was ultimately left out by the Three Lions boss, much to his disappointment.
Earlier today, he took to social media to open up on what he admits has been the most difficult 12 months of his career.
He wrote: “2022 has been the toughest year to date.
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“Just wanna thank you all for the support, none of you go unnoticed.
“It’s naturally affected me mentally, I’m currently just tryna deal with the cards I’ve been dealt.
“I hope your end of year is filled with peace, joy and happiness.”
Following confirmation of the extent of his injury setback, James added: “It hurts more than you could ever imagine.
“I guess it’s another learning lesson, what the lesson is, I’m yet to know.
“It’s always hard to see the bigger picture when we live day to day.
“I’m sure I’ll look back in the future and understand why this had to happen.
“Growth takes place when your (sic) challenged.
“In such a bad situation there’s still many things to be thankful for, you guys being one.”
James has been working with personal trainer James Ralph for the last 18 months.
Ralph was in attendance at last night’s match, and posted a cryptic message after his client picked up his injury.
He wrote in a later-deleted Instagram story: “I need to bite my tongue despite having A LOT to say…”