Chelsea captain Reece James has hinted that he could be fit to face Arsenal with an intriguing post on social media.
James has been sidelined since the Blues’ first game of the season due to a hamstring injury. He sat out a 4-1 win over Burnley last time out due to a one-game suspension for abusive language towards an official.
The England international was expected to be available to face Arsenal on Saturday (October 21). However, reports on Tuesday raised doubts over his fitness by claiming that he had been training away from the first team after sustaining a new injury.
James seems to have caught wind of those reports and he’s uploaded a post on X (formerly Twitter) including a picture of him in a training kit. He captioned it:
James was appointed Chelsea captain by Mauricio Pochettino in the summer and was expected to be a massive player for the side this season. He’s made 148 appearances for the side since debuting in 2019, scoring 11 goals and providing 20 assists.
However, injuries continue to plague the Blues right-back and he’s been absent for nine of the club’s 10 games this season. Thus, Pochettino will be eager to have him fit and ready to face Arsenal at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea are currently low down in 11th in the league, with three wins, three losses and two draws from eight games. They face a high-flying unbeaten Gunners side who are second in the table.
Kevin Campbell backs Arsenal to beat Chelsea this weekend
Former Arsenal striker Kevin Campbell has confident about the Gunners’ chances of beating the Blues on Saturday. He reckons Mikel Arteta’s men will keep a clean sheet at Stamford Bridge, telling The Highbury Squad YouTube channel:
“I want to say now because I do fancy our chances against Chelsea: I think we’ll win the game 2-0. I’ll be honest, I really don’t care who scores on the weekend. The key is: we stay winning.”
The north Londoners are unbeaten in the league this season, winning six of eight games. Their only defeat of the 2023-24 campaign thus far has come against Ligue 1 side Lens in the group stages of the UEFA Champions League.
Arsenal sealed an impressive 1-0 win against Manchester City last time out which was Arteta’s first league win over Pep Guardiola. Many are tipping them to mount yet another title challenge and perhaps end their 19-year wait for the title.
