Atletico Madrid winger Ademola Lookman has never scored or assisted against Chelsea in his career, and this could be because the Blues have the toughest opponent he has ever faced – Reece James.
Chelsea were keen on signing Lookman when he was still at Atalanta, and were likely quietly impressed by his performance in a 2-1 win over the Blues earlier in the Champions League.
He ended up making the move to Spain instead, and is one of the most important players for the Champions League semi-finalists who are currently level with Arsenal in the tie.
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Ademola Lookman names Reece James as his toughest opponent
While playing for Atalanta, Fulham, Everton and Leicester City, Lookman has faced up against the Blues, and wasn’t on the winning side once until this season.
Lookman was asked by ESPN to name his toughest opponent in his career so far, and he named Reece James as the most difficult player he has come up against.
The Chelsea captain is regularly talked about as one of the best in the world in his position. Kyle Walker picked James over PSG superstar Achraf Hakimi.
Vinicius Jr, who has come up against James a number of times, has also been full of praise for the defender in recent years.
Chelsea have certainly missed the skipper over the past few weeks, but are buoyed by the fact that he will soon be returning to the side.
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Reece James closing in on Chelsea return
James has not featured for Chelsea since the middle of March, despite enjoying a far better season than normal when it comes to his injury record.
The Blues originally expected him to return to face Manchester United, although he has not been present during their poor league form of late.
Calum McFarlane confirmed James was back in training though ahead of the clash against Nottingham Forest, although they are not prepared to take any risk regarding his fitness.
It could well be a case of build him up slowly before hopefully having him ready to start for the FA Cup final later this month against Manchester City.
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