Chelsea boss Graham Potter breaks silence on latest Reece James injury amid lengthy lay-off concerns

Chelsea proved that the winter break could be pivotal as they recorded a comfortable 2-0 win over Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge. Kai Havertz put the Blues ahead in the 16th minute before Mason Mount celebrated his 150th Chelsea appearance with a well taken goal.

The only downside to the game for Chelsea would have been the injury to defender Reece James who signalled to the bench the discomfort in his knee minutes before laying down on the turf and receiving treatment with his hands on his face. He was later replaced by captain Cesar Azipilcueta and walked unaided down the tunnel.

The 23-year-old is now facing time out having missed out of the World Cup with England because of a knee injury. Manager Graham Potter who admits his concern over the recent injury issues the defender has been having had this to say.

The Chelsea boss said: “I’m not sure on the state of the injury. Too early to say. You can see his quality. It’s a blow for us. Fingers crossed. We’ll see how bad it is.”

Chelsea close in top four

The win took Chelsea to eight on the league table and having failed to score in their last three games will be delighted that they got two at the Bridge. They are crucially also just six points behind fourth placed Tottenham and eight behind Manchester City.

The fact that the team kept a clean sheet will also delight manager Graham Potter will be looking to take all the positives he can take ahead of their visit to Nottingham Forest on New Year’s Day.