Chelsea player 'injured' ahead of Servette Conference League game as Enzo Maresca forced into changes

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has confirmed that captain Reece James is still injured and will not be involved in Thursday’s Europa Conference League game against Servette. James started five of the six pre-season games but was left out of the Inter Milan match due to a knock in training.

Maresca later told LondonWorld that he wasn’t sure if James’ injury was the same one that kept him out for large parts of last season, but he hinted that the defender could be back sooner rather than later. However, ahead of the Conference League game tonight, Maresca confirmed that James was still injured and will not be involved.

When asked about the fullback, the Chelsea boss said: "Reece? No, he is still injured. He's on the list, but he cannot play tomorrow."

Maresca also confirmed that Wesley Fofana, who started the game against Manchester City, will miss this match as well. This decision is part of managing his workload since he’s only recently returned from a long-term injury that kept him out for the entire last season.

Maresca explained the reason behind Fofana's absence: "At this moment, for instance, Wes Fofana is out, but that's because he played the other day. Due to his one-year injury, he cannot play Thursday. Some decisions are made because we take care of the players."

The duo now join Ben Chilwell and Raheem Sterling, who have also been left out of the team and are training with the loan group as the transfer window approaches its final 10 days. Chilwell still has his shirt number, but Raheem Sterling has seen his number taken away and given to new signing Pedro Neto, while Trevoh Chalobah has also lost his number.

Chalobah was the first to be left behind as the team travelled to America for pre-season, while Conor Gallagher was effectively swapped for Felix earlier this week.