Troy Deeney: Chelsea must 'cut losses' on Reece James as star tipped to make 'drastic change'
Troy Deeney has called on Chelsea to “cut their losses” on Reece James amid the Blues captain's latest injury setback.
Jaime He seemed to have put his injury problems in the rearview mirror when he recently started four games for Chelsea, only to suffer a recent hamstring problem Two weeks ago.
This means James has played just 662 minutes of Premier League football (the equivalent of just over seven games) since he was named Chelsea captain in August 2023.
James' latest injury also marks the ninth time he has been sidelined with a hamstring issue since December 2020.
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca He said Tuesday that James is “improving” but “still needs weeks to get back.”
With absences increasing and a significant lack of return to the field, Deeney believes the Blues must face the brutal reality that threatens them.
“I think if you get some money for him (James), you'll have done well,” Deeney told talkSPORT.com.
“It's similar with Luke Shaw. You are not denying their ability and how good they are.
“But if they're not fit to play, what are you paying them for? You can also go and give that space to another young player and, unfortunately, cut your losses.”
“You can't keep saying, 'Every time he's fit, he's great.' You have to cut your losses.”
Deeney also believed James needed to ask tough questions of Chelsea's medical department given his repeated hamstring tears in recent years.
“If I had eight hamstring injuries in four years and I only used the physios and doctors at Chelsea, I would say, 'Right, let's have a chat, I'll never use you again,'” Deeney said.
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“'I'm going to get my own person, I'm going to make a drastic change.'”
However, if James sought outside help to overcome his hamstring problems, Deeney asked the 24-year-old to take drastic measures.
“If they've been using their own people, then they'd be fired and I'd sue them,” Deeney said.
“You can't keep having the same injury. Something along the way is breaking.
“It's a shame really, because I don't think we'll ever see the true potential of Reece James.”
The other factor compounding James' injury setbacks is the fact that Chelsea have been without their club captain.
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James was named club captain aged 23, replacing César Azpilicueta, who departed in 2023 to join Atlético Madrid on a free transfer.
It made James Chelsea's youngest permanent captain since the late Ray Wilkins, who was handed the armband in 1975, when he was 18.
The captaincy was certainly a special moment for James given he has been on the club's books since he was six years old.
But Deeney did not believe James was the right man to replace Azpilicueta, calling the appointment “strange from the start.”
“I don't see captain or leadership credentials in him,” Deeney said.
“A good player and a good person, but I think they stitched him up a bit.
How many games has Reece James missed due to injury?
2019/20: 12 games
2020/21: Nine games
2021/22: 20 games
2022/23: 25 games
2023/24: 38 games
2024/25: 14 games*
Source: Transfermarkt
“You need to go and talk to a JT (John Terry) or Frank Lampard and ask them what it entails. Then try to live that model in that new era.”
Unfortunately for James, he may not get the chance to make his mark as Chelsea captain if the club heeds Deeney's call to sell him.
