Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca will be really pleased with Reece James at the moment.
After so many injury problems, James is finally playing regularly for Chelsea again. So far this season, he has not missed a single Premier League game.
Of late, Malo Gusto has been playing in his right-back position, but with Romeo Lavia sidelined once again, James could start in midfield and still remain in the side.
The defender is currently on England duty and has spoken about captaining Maresca’s team.
Reece James controls the ball during England v Andorra - FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifier
Photo by Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images
Reece James finding it easier to lead team now that he’s fit again
Maresca will also be happy with how James is captaining Chelsea, something that the right-back is no longer struggling with now that he is back on the pitch.
Speaking to The Standard and other newspapers ahead of England’s World Cup qualifier against Serbia on Thursday, James said: “For me, the hardest thing for me was to lead when I wasn’t playing. But now I’ve been playing on a regular basis for a decent period.
“I’ve found it a lot easier while playing regularly to grow as a captain and coming here. I try to learn from other captains and more experienced players.”
Going forward, it will be interesting to see what Maresca does with James. After being described as one of Chelsea’s “main” players, Gusto no longer appears to be James’ back-up.
However, the 25-year-old has too much quality to sit on the Blues’ bench. Maresca will have to find a way to get him into the team.
Chelsea captain Reece James with Jamie Gittens
Photo by Chris Lee – Chelsea FC/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Reece James answers Enzo Maresca’s challenge
In the past, Chelsea’s head coach has called out his captain for not showing enough leadership.
Around this time last year, when Maresca spoke about James’ influence in the dressing room, he said: “Yes, I spoke with him and I expected from him more in terms of leadership, inside the changing room and for different kind of things. So he’s on the way, he’s doing well, he’s progressing but from Reece I expected more also in terms of leadership.”
It is an area where the England international has clearly grown, though, and there was one moment during Chelsea’s 1-0 win against Tottenham Hotspur at the start of the month where you could see that.
James led the Chelsea team into the dressing room at half-time, possibly gathering them together so that they would not have to face the hostile Tottenham supporters alone.
There is also a possibility that he had some instructions to share. Whatever the reason was, James looked like a real captain at that moment, responding to Maresca’s challenge.