Enzo Maresca told to place 'one game' limit on Chelsea star he wants 'more' from

Former Chelsea favourite William Gallas has been speaking about Reece James’ return and the difficult battle the Blues face to keep their captain fit. James has been battling with various injury issues over the last two years, and his latest problem has kept him out for the best part of a year.

James finally returned over the weekend to play 90 minutes for the first time in 18 months as Chelsea defeated Newcastle United at home, and while that is an encouraging step for the full-back, Chelsea need to see a sustained period of fitness from James for him to be a consistent starter.

In the meantime, former Chelsea favourite Gallas has issued his advice to Chelsea for James’ situation, advising them to play the defender just once per week as he looks to remain fit. “I wouldn’t want to be in Reece’s situation because, when you have had so many injuries like he had, you have a lot of pressure on your shoulders before every game and your constantly thinking about not getting injured again,” Gallas told Prime Casino.

“The pressure on Reece James is very high. I wouldn’t want to be in his position. I hope everything will be fine for him and, if he plays once a week until the end of the season, I think everybody will be happy with that. “It’s going to take time. Patience will be required and, eventually, he will get back into good shape and he will start to have good performances. Maresca knows how to deal with him. He knows if he plays every three days, then he can get injured. So that's why once a week will be good.”

He added: “I think even after 10 games in a row, one game a week, they still have to give him for two weeks rest. Former players know how it works. Even if you only play one game a week, after 10 (games) you start to feel tired because you have training and you have pressure on your shoulders. That consumes a lot of a players energy.

“Reece will need to be careful. I hope he can get to 10 games in a row. When he does, he will need a little break. I have my fingers crossed that he can stay fit until the end of the season. Reece James knows this is a very important season for him.”

Maresca on James

Enzo Maresca was a little critical of James after the win over Newcastle, telling reporters: “He's on the way, he's doing well, he's progressing but I expect more. Most of the time, a player thinks that 'because I am captain I expect that you [the manager] give me more'.

"No, for me because you are the captain you have to give more. You have to give more than the rest. I expect it from Reece and his team-mates expect it from him to give always more in terms of leadership." The Blues boss continued: “He's understanding that we're expecting more from him," added Maresca. He's our guy from the academy. It's one of the reasons why he has to show more in terms of personality. He's a reserved guy. But when you don't have a proper leader, you need to build that. I think we don't have a proper leader. We need to build them. Reece is one who is on the way but he's not there. He needs to make an effort."