England manager Gareth Southgate has decided to leave Chelsea’s Reece James out of his World Cup squad and has already informed the right-back of his decision.
According to The Athletic, the Chelsea defender was called by Southgate on Tuesday and was told that he is going to be left out of the 26-man squad ahead of its reveal on Thursday afternoon.
It is believed that Southgate does not want to risk taking the 22-year-old as he is still recovering from a knee injury sustained against AC Milan last month and would only be available to play during the latter stages of the competition.
Right-back was somewhat of a problem area for Southgate given all the talent he has in that position and it looks like Kieran Trippier, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Kyle Walker will be on the plane heading to Qatar.
James had been optimistic he could recover in time to make the tournament despite a scan showing he had sustained ligament damage and returned to Chelsea training for the first time on Tuesday with some light running, states the report.
James is said to be devastated by the news but respects Southgate’s decision and will now continue working with the Blues in order to complete his recovery.
The Chelsea players not involved in the World Cup will be travelling to Abu Dhabi next month for a training camp, where they will play at least one friendly – James is aiming to be involved.