Chelsea captain Reece James is set to miss three months of action with a knee injury, having had surgery on the problem sustained in training.
Chelsea confirmed on Friday morning that club captain Reece James has undergone successful knee surgery, describing the operation as ‘minor’.
But Simon Johnson of The Athletic reports that the injury sustained in training is set to rule James out for around three months of action, potentially sidelining him until mid-January.
The injury is James’ second of the season, having already suffered a hamstring injury that ruled him out for Chelsea’s match against Brentford, as well as the entire international break.
Arsenal don’t currently have a match scheduled against Chelsea until March, when the two teams meet in the Premier League at Stamford Bridge. But that could change, with Chelsea and Arsenal both still in the League Cup, and the FA Cup to kick off in early January.
Even if James’ absence doesn’t end up being relevant to Arsenal directly, Chelsea losing their captain could have an indirect impact on the title race.
It’s hard to say which teams are true title contenders at this early stage, particularly with the uncertainty around a potential major punishment for Premier League leaders Manchester City.
Arsenal have been the best of the rest, with five wins from six games, but Chelsea have also shown positive signs in the early stages of the season.
If the Gunners hadn’t turned around their 1-0 deficit in the meeting between the two in September, Xabi Alonso’s side would be ahead of Mikel Arteta’s.
Chelsea need to show a lot more consistency if they’re going to fight for the title, and they need serious defensive improvements. No one in the top half of the table has conceded as many goals as the Blues.
Losing the club’s captain and star right-back is surely not going to help on that front.
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