Gabriel Martinelli now names 23-year-old Chelsea player as his toughest ever opponent

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Arsenal star Gabriel Martinelli has now named a Chelsea player as the toughest opponent he has faced.

In a TikTok on the Champions League’s official page, the winger named Reece James as the opponent he has found the most difficulty up against.

Chelsea are currently nursing the fact that they are going to be without James for a number of months now after his latest hamstring issue.

After seeking specialist advice following the most recent problem suffered against Everton, he has recently undergone surgery in an attempt to put an end to those issues.

Despite being named club captain when Mauricio Pochettino joined the club, his absence has clearly been a problem and one that needed addressing.

One of the games he did at least feature from the bench for this season was the home fixture against title-challenging Arsenal, where they put in one of their strongest performances of the season.

Martinelli names James as best opponent

However, his presence off the bench wasn’t enough to avoid a late capitulation which saw them forced to leave Stamford Bridge with only a point.

Martinelli started for the Gunners that day, however as has been typical for his season really he didn’t put in a particularly threatening display.

He has now named the Chelsea man as his toughest opponent, ahead of the likes of Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier.

James has currently been replaced by Malo Gusto, who has put in a couple of very impressive performances in a row.

The Frenchman has also endured a number of injury concerns in his first full season at Stamford Bridge, although looks as if he is back to full fitness just when the Blues need him the most.

Without him, they would likely be playing regular centre-back Axel Disasi in that position, which would probably see four central defenders on the pitch at the same time with Levi Colwill on the other side.