Chelsea star teases injury return ahead of Nottingham Forest clash
Chelsea captain Reece James has teased his return from injury ahead of their clash with Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Sunday.
Nuno Espirito Santo's side lost their unbeaten start to the season last time out against Fulham, and if they were hoping to get back on the correct track an unforgiving upcoming fixture list is the key factor standing in their way. Up next for Forest are Enzo Maresca's Blues, who have settled quickly under their new coach to sit fourth in the table.
This is even whilst battling key injuries or the return of players from prior long-term issues, particularly in defence. James remains the only senior option on the comeback trail as things stand - he has been missing for the entirety of the season so far because of a persistent hamstring problem, one that meant he only appeared 11 times last term.
But now posting a series of photos to Instagram, the 24-year-old gave a confident update, writing: "Long story short I’m doing well. Hope to see you soon."
Although it is undetermined from this whether he will be ready to travel as part of the hosts' matchday squad at Stamford Bridge this weekend, one certainty is that Maresca is not going to rush back his captain until absolutely necessary.
"The most important thing is players come back when they are 100% fit," the opposition coach said via football.london, before playing last weekend. ""Reece is still out. Unfortunately, we don't have an idea at the moment [when he'll be back]. In this case, he's been very unlucky."
Chelsea have Malo Gusto back fit and playing in that right back berth now anyway, though he has only had two outings with his minutes managed since returning - perhaps a potential weak point for Callum Hudson-Odoi to exploit playing against his former club.
Similarly, midfielder Romeo Lavia only returned at the weekend against Brighton with 12 minutes of action afforded, and finally youngster Omari Kellyman is expected to be absent until November with his own hamstring injury.