Is Reece James fit to play against Liverpool? Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca unveils Cole Palmer's plan for Blues captain

Reece James is inching closer to making his first competitive appearance for Chelsea under Enzo Maresca.

The captain of the 'bleus' club He has been plagued by injuries throughout his career and fitness issues have kept him out for the entire season so far.

However, with a big crash against Liverpool This Sunday, James could be ready to make his long-awaited return to the field.

Here, talkSPORT.com takes a look at the latest on the right-back…

Will James be fit to play against Liverpool?

Enzo Maresca has confirmed that James is available to play against Liverpool.

He Chelsea The manager revealed that the defender has been training with the rest of the Blues squad during the international break.

In his pre-match press conference, he said: Finally we are all available. We have a fully fit squad available for selection.

“James Reece is available. He's back, he worked with us throughout the international break. “He's finally back.”

Maresca then went into more detail about James' status and how Chelsea will manage his workload.

AND Cole PalmerThe plan will be used to help you.

Palmer was unexpectedly left off the Blues' roster. European conference league squad for the League Phase, along with Romeo Lavia and Wesley Fofana.

However, it was explained that the trio was omitted to protect them from injuries and avoid an overload of minutes by not playing in the competition.

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James was included in that squad but now Maresca has confirmed that the same plan will be implemented for the right back.

“Reece's body can't play, for example, twice a week, so one of the solutions is to try to manage him in the same way we do with Romeo (Lavia),” said the Italian.

“Right now I think this may be the solution (playing against him once a week). In the future? I don't know.

“The solution is to go slowly, slowly.

“In the future, we will be able to use it during the week, but right now we need to use it once a week.”

It means James will only feature in Premier League matches at the weekend and his first return to the field could be against Liverpool.

Chelsea and the Reds are two of the teams in the best form at the start of the season and it is ready to be a thriller on Sunday.

James is not likely to start right away, which means Bad Taste should continue as right back against Cody Gakpo or Luis Díaz.

However, the Blues captain could be in the team and that will be a boost for the team.