"His body cannot play twice a week" - Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca provides detail on Reece James injury comeback ahead of Liverpool clash
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has revealed that Reece James will be available for the Blues for their upcoming Premier League clash against Liverpool. The club captain is in full training but the manager wants to carefully manage his return to the side.
Speaking to the media in a pre-match press conference, Maresca said that James will not be able to play two matches per week as of yet and will thus be eased into the team. He added that they will manage his minutes just like they are doing with Romeo Lavia and Wesley Fofana. He said (via football.london):
"He is finally available. He worked with us over the international break. It's good news, especially for him because being injured is not a good feeling. Finally, he is back. It's complicated when you get injury, injury, injury again. It's not easy so you are always looking for a solution.
"Probably the solution with Reece is the same solution we are using with Romeo [Lavia] and Wes [Fofana] in terms of using them just once a week, in one game, because probably in this moment, for different reasons, his [Reece's] body cannot play twice a week. One of the solutions is probably to try and manage him in the same way we are doing with Wes and Romeo."
Chelsea have a fully fit squad ahead of their visit to Liverpool this weekend. Ben Chilwell was dealing with illness earlier this week and has missed training but is expected to be back by Saturday.
Enzo Maresca not thinking about Chelsea captain Reece James vs Malo Gusto
Enzo Mareca was asked whether Malo Gusto's role would change once Reece James returns to the squad. The Chelsea manager was quick to play down the talks, saying their first aim was getting James fully match-fit.
He said:
"Fantastic. Very happy. He's giving us many things. He's helping the process in the way we want to play a lot. We are happy with him, we are happy with Renato [Veiga] and the times he has to play inside. For sure Malo is doing very, very well. For the age he is at and how much risk in terms of player, it is top."
The manager wants James to prove his fitness and added that the Englishman is capable of playing numerous roles for the club. He said:
"First of all, he has to be fit and then slowly we will see. The most important thing for Reece is he is finally fit and then we will see how we will use him. We have many players that are versatile and can play in different positions."
Chelsea have a tough set of fixtures coming up with Liverpool, Newcastle United, Manchester United, and Arsenal their next few opponents in the Premier League. The Blues also travel to Greece to face Panathinaikos in the Europa Conference League and Newcastle in the Carabao Cup.