CHELSEA fear Reece James faces months on the sidelines after the England star suffered ANOTHER injury.
And Mauricio Pochettino was dealt a further blow yesterday after Michael Olise snubbed a £35million move in favour of signing a new four-year Crystal Palace deal.
ReutersReece James will hand over the armband as he faces another long lay-off[/caption]
James left Chelsea’s clash with Liverpool early at the weekend and suffered a new injury in trainingRex
New Blues skipper James is understood to have damaged his hamstring in training this week following Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Liverpool.
The club are now sweating on the results of scans and a lengthy absence would be a huge blow to boss Pochettino and his injury-hit defender.
James has now picked up 11 fitness issues since the start of the 2021-22 season — including FIVE hamstring problems.
The 23-year-old missed last year’s World Cup with a knee problem which recurred as soon as he returned to action in December.
It could be the third major injury since Pochettino’s arrival, with forward Christoper Nkunku and defender Wesley Fofana out for several months.
Malo Gusto, signed for £30.7m from Lyon last season, is expected to fill in for James at right-back.
Palace winger Olise has added to Pochettino’s woes by signing a new Palace deal until 2027 — a one-year extension — despite the Blues triggering his £35million release clause.
So Pochettino is now set to turn his attention to £50m-rated Nottingham Forest forward Brennan Johnson.
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Eagles chairman Steve Parish persuaded France Under-21 ace Olise to stay during last-ditch talks on Wednesday.
Parish, who appeared to taunt Chelsea after confirming the news by tweeting a “shh” emoji, said: “Michael will go to the very top. To know he will be on that team sheet every week, it is a good decision.”
The new deal came as a shock to manager Roy Hodgson, who only found out moments after stepping off the training pitch on Thursday afternoon.
Olise is currently recovering from a hamstring injury that could rule him out until late September.
Having already lost Wilfried Zaha to Galatasaray on a free, Hodgson said: “It is the best possible news we could have. I had been concerned.
“It’s very difficult. There’s a very wealthy group at the top of our league spending hundreds of millions. Palace are not capable of doing that.”
Palace are braced themselves for another fight to keep midfielder Cheick Doucoure from Liverpool, who missed out on Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia after Chelsea’s stumped up £173m for the pair.
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