Chelsea defender Reece James has not yet definitively ruled himself out of contention for England at the World Cup.
James, who had made the right-wing-back position his own in Gareth Southgate’s England side, suffered a knee injury during a Champions League match vs AC Milan.
The initial prognosis was not good for the Chelsea academy product, who appeared to have next to no chance of being on the plane to compete in Qatar.
That undoubtedly would have been devastating for James, who had the opportunity to start for a side considered one of the favourites to triumph at the tournament.
Perhaps that’s why James has refused to rule himself out prematurely. Speaking to The Sun, he revealed that he still holds onto hope that he will be fit to feature.
“I need to keep working hard over the next few weeks and see where I am on call-up day. I will try and not rule myself out. It is still slow and in the early stages.”
“I have been in rehab for two weeks, so I am still taking it day-by-day. The Chelsea medical staff have not given me a percentage of my chance of being back for the World Cup.”
“It is down to how I feel closer to the time and how stable it is.”
It appears unlikely that James will be fit for the tournament, but England fans will be crossing their fingers as tightly as he is that he will somehow be able to feature.
