Reece James and his Chelsea team-mates will be treating Thursday’s meeting with Tottenham Hotspur like any other tough Premier League fixture, despite the anticipation that always comes with a London derby.
Tottenham come to Stamford Bridge tomorrow evening with the Blues looking for a fourth consecutive victory over our capital rivals, having already triumphed 4-3 in north London earlier this season.
That was head coach [Enzo Maresca](/en/teams/profile/enzo-maresca)’s first experience of sitting in the dugout for a London derby between Chelsea and Tottenham, and James explained why the Italian has exceeded his expectations since joining from Leicester City last summer.
‘He’s been amazing since he arrived,’ said our captain.
‘I wasn’t sure what to expect when he came, but he’s surprised me a lot with how advanced his football knowledge is and his understanding and the way he sets up and wants us to play.
‘I think he’s doing an amazing job and I hope we can achieve what we want to together.’
Both player and head coach have made clear their aim this season is to qualify for the Champions League, however, it is not just with the Blues that James has impressed recently. The 25-year-old returned to international duty during the March window, and marked his first Three Lions' start in two-and-a-half years by scoring his maiden goal for England, a stunning free-kick in a 3-0 World Cup-qualifying win over Latvia at Wembley.
‘I feel good and happy to be back representing my country. I played in both games so it was a successful break for me,’ he reflected.
‘It was a great feeling to score my goal, I waited for that moment for a number of years. I was delighted to be back in the England squad, putting on the shirt again, and to score as well was an amazing moment and great timing.’
Now back from international duty and busy preparing at Cobham, Reece's focus is firmly on our back-to-back Premier League derbies this week, starting with Tottenham’s visit to the Bridge on Thursday, before we make the short trip to Brentford on Sunday.
However, he won’t be changing the way he prepares for this derby, although he knows it will be another tough game, instead retaining his belief in the approach which has taken us to fourth in the table so far this season - 10 places and 15 points above our next opponents.
‘Preparation for this game and for every game doesn’t change, it is always the same,’ he continued.
‘We know the opposition is going to be high quality. It’s going to be a tough game and I’ll prepare the best I can, and likewise for the rest of the team.
‘I think it helps. I have a routine and not a lot changes day-to-day. Week-to-week it’s very planned and I wouldn’t say much changes.
‘The Premier League is tough. Every game is going to be a tough battle and we are playing against two rivals in our next games, but I don’t think that changes much.
‘We have our way of playing, our style, and our objective is to win every game we go into.’