Chelsea set for major injury boost as skipper Reece James is close to resuming full training with the rest of his teammates, according to the Daily Mail.
However, the 23-year-old’s availability could be delayed after he was charged by the Football Association over an alleged incident in the tunnel after the 1-0 defeat against Aston Villa last Sunday.
James, who missed the Premier League game due to his hamstring injury, reportedly confronted referee Jarred Gillett after the disappointing loss at Stamford Bridge. He has until September 29 to respond to a charge of breaching FA rule E3.
The Daily Mail states that it is looking highly likely the commission will not reconvene before Fulham’s clash on Monday at Craven Cottage.
Chelsea will then take on Vincent Kompany’s Burnley before the October international break, but it remains to be seen if the hearing can be organised before then.
If James is to serve a ban while he is unavailable through injury that would be good news for the West Londoners. The newspaper says Mauricio Pochettino is hopeful the right-back can rejoin full training within the next 10 days.
It is believed that the England international will be in contention for the Blues immediately after the next international break for their league game against Arsenal on October 21.
Good news
James sustained a hamstring problem last month having struggled with injuries throughout last season where he featured in 24 appearances and made four goal contributions across all competitions.
This season, he has made only one appearance which came against Liverpool in their league opener but he limped off after the 76th minute of the game due to an injury.
Chelsea have several players in the treatment room including Christopher Nkunku, Romeo Lavia, Carney Chukwuemeka, Trevoh Chalobah, Benoit Badiashile, Wesley Fofana, Marcus Bettinelli, and Ben Chilwell.
Chilwell suffered a hamstring injury during their narrow win over Brighton in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday and he will be assessed in the coming days.
Chelsea have picked up just five points in six Premier League games under new manager Mauricio Pochettino and are languishing in 14th place.
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