Reece James and Wesley Fofana close to returning to full training
Chelsea duo Reece James and Wesley Fofana are close to returning to full training in Dubai, reveals Graham Potter – as both defenders step up recoveries from knee injuries ahead of Premier League return this month
- Reece James and Wesley Fofana have both been out of action since October
- They both suffered knee injuries ruling them out of selection ahead of World Cup
- But Graham Potter has now confirmed both are close to returning to full training
- Chelsea return to action on December 27 when they take on Bournemouth
Graham Potter has confirmed that Chelsea defenders Reece James and Wesley Fofana are close to being back in full training as they step up their recoveries in Dubai ahead of the return of the Premier League this month.
James has been recovering from a knee injury which he picked up in Chelsea’s Champions League clash with AC Milan back in October.
At the time, Potter was ‘hopeful’ that his in-form right-back would be fine but he was unable to race back to fitness in time to be selected in Gareth Southgate’s 26-man England squad.
Chelsea defender Reece James has been training during the club’s mid-season trip to Dubai
Wesley Fofana has also been stepping up his training regime in Dubai as he eyes up a return
Meanwhile, Fofana – who joined the club for £70million in August – was also unable to represent France at the World Cup in Qatar, having similarly sustained a knee injury, just a week before James – also against AC Milan.
Speaking to Chelsea’s official website from Dubai, Potter confirmed the defensive duo are close to returning to full training and have travelled to Dubai for a mid-season trip.
‘Reece is not quite fully training but he’s integrating into training along with Wesley,’ Potter said.
Chelsea boss Graham Potter confirmed the news while at the club’s training camp in Dubai
‘Wesley is a little bit further behind but not too far.’
Both James and Fofana will be forced to watch on from the sidelines as their respective countries face-off against one another on Saturday in the quarter-finals of the World Cup.
Fofana’s injury was initially feared to be worse so Potter will be delighted to get the former Leicester City man back at the heart of his defence sooner rather than later.
The former Brighton boss also gave an update on left-back Ben Chilwell – another to miss out on the winter World Cup.
The England and Chelsea full-back tore his hamstring in a victory over Dinamo Zagreb in November and is still not yet ready to return to first-team training despite some progress.
‘Ben has come back from his individual work in Dubai and he’s now working closer with the guys but still not team training,’ he added.
James suffered a heartbreaking knee injury in October, keeping him out of Gareth Southgate’s England squad
Fofana suffered a knee injury against AC Milan in October which forced him onto the sidelines
Updating a list of injuries, Potter also revealed that Kepa Arrizabalaga and Ruben Loftus-Cheek are both making progress from their respective ailments.
‘Kepa is not quite with the team yet but has stepped up his rehab,’ Potter added.
‘Ruben is doing some work in the gym so we’re hopeful that he can be involved next week but we’ll see how he goes.
‘There are lots of players at different levels and that’s the challenge but we’re making progress so that’s the positive.’
Chelsea return to Premier League action on December 27 when they take on Gary O’Neil’s Bournemouth side.
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