Enzo Maresca faces huge decision over world class player next week | OneFootball

Reece James made his return to the Chelsea team after his latest injury on the 11th of January with 45 minutes against Morecambe in the FA Cup, and since then his appearances and influence have built steadily.

On Thursday night he played 90 minutes in midfield against Copenhagen, a little over a week after he played 90 minutes against Aston Villa in a similar role.

We doubt he’ll be risked from the start tomorrow – Enzo Maresca has made it very clear that the priority is to keep him fresh and fit. But he is now ready to play the biggest games when needed, and he will be eyeing up the second leg against Copenhagen, as well as intense Premier League derbies against Tottenham and Arsenal to come, as games he wants to be ready for.

‘We have another game in a few days against Leicester and now it’s the business end of the season. It’s time to kick on and keep the wins going. Building momentum is key,” James said in a brief chat with the Chelsea official website.

“We have our goals of winning the Conference League and qualifying for the Champions League. I have zero doubts in achieving that. We look forward to our next few games.”

James can be managed – but there are no guarantees

Reece James celebrates after a big win. (Photo by Patrik Lundin/Getty Images)

They way we see it coming together, James will be rested tomorrow against Leicester and will then start both against Copenhagen and Arsenal next week.

As long as he doesn’t play 90 minutes in either of those games his body should be able to handle it, given the Arsenal game is followed by an international break for him to recover. But it will be a huge risk and ait’s a huge question for Enzo Maresca to decide on this week.

As we’ve seen many times before – especially with James – there’s only so much you can do. Running players into the ground is sure to increase their chances of getting hurt, but even treating them very carefully can’t guarantee their fitness.