Pochettino: Chelsea captain James out 'a few weeks' with hamstring injury

Posted Saturday, August 19, 2023 by thescore.com

Chelsea captain Reece James is set to miss "a few weeks" after injuring his hamstring in training this week, Blues manager Mauricio Pochettino said Friday.

The 23-year-old started in Chelsea's season-opening 1-1 draw with Liverpool at Stamford Bridge on Sunday before being substituted in the 77th minute.

"It's a sad moment because he's our captain," said Pochettino. "He was so excited and full of energy to be our captain. We are going to assess him day by day.

"For sure he's going to (come back) stronger than he was. It's a few weeks."

England international James's career has been plagued by injuries. The right-back made just 16 Premier League appearances last season.

James suffered a knee injury in October which ruled him out of England's 2022 World Cup squad, before he was sidelined for a further four weeks following a recurrence of the problem during his first game back in December.

He also missed the final seven games of Chelsea's season with a hamstring problem as the Blues finished 12th.

James, who made his Blues debut in 2019 after a season on loan at Wigan, was made captain of the west-London club in pre-season after fellow defender Cesar Azpilicueta left Stamford Bridge.