Reece James has consoled Omari Kellyman, who recently underwent surgery. The 19-year-old midfielder has been plagued with injuries since joining Chelsea from Aston Villa for £19m in the summer, and he's still yet to make his first-team debut.
Kellyman only featured twice for the under-21s before suffering a nasty hamstring injury in September. After six months on the sidelines, he finally returned to action earlier this month, playing 35 minutes in the Blues' 3-1 win over Norwich City in Premier League 2.
The England Under-19 international later announced that he'll miss the rest of the season after aggravating his previous muscle injury. In an emotional statement on Instagram, Kellyman said: "Beyond gutted to say that this season has come to an early end for me due to a reinjury of my hamstring, despite only just returning after having hamstring issues for a massive part of this season.
"24-25 has been a tough season for me mentally and physically due to injury but it's important now that I take time to get this right and come out the other side stronger and better ready for what next season brings."
Then, on Tuesday, Kellyman confirmed that he had undergone surgery on the hamstring injury. Captioning a picture of himself in bed with a knee brace, the teenager said: "Successful surgery road to recovery starts now [blue heart emoji]."
James reposted Kellyman's update to his Instagram story, wishing him well. The Chelsea captain said: "Speedy recovery lil bro, the tables will turn [fingers crossed emoji]."
Reece James sends Omari Kellyman a message on Instagram
Reece James sends Omari Kellyman a message on Instagram (Image: @Reece on Instagram)
James has recently returned from a succession of hamstring injuries, and he now looks close to being back to his best. Speaking to Hayters TV following England's 3-0 win over Latvia, the Blues defender said: "This is the best I’ve felt in a long time.
"It means a lot more to me (playing for England). The last two-and-a-half or three years have been a struggle. I’ve had lots of injuries and it’s been tough, but towards the back end of this season I’ve been playing consecutively and I’m happy to be back playing for my club and for my country on a regular basis."
Meanwhile, speaking to Sky Sports, Thomas Tuchel heaped praise on the right-back. The England boss said: "There cannot be any doubt about Reece's quality, it's the highest level.
"We were in close contact in the last weeks. We were clear he'd trained without pause and if he didn't play it was the choice of the club, protecting him."
The former Chelsea boss added: "We knew he was in a good space mentally. I know the quality he has in that foot - it's amazing. He has every right to be happy and proud of his performance. He's in excellent shape.
"When we called him up he hadn't had many games but it wasn't due to injury, they were just taking care and managing him. He looks sharp and in shape. With his quality, there can be no doubt."
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Chelsea flag prior the UEFA Champions League Quarter Final Leg One match between Chelsea FC and Real Madrid at Stamford Bridge. (Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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