Thomas Tuchel has to deal with the setback of another Reece James injury at the World Cup, although the former Chelsea boss really should have known better.
The Blues captain may not feature again for England at this tournament after suffering a hamstring injury, a factor which Chelsea fans have become all too accustomed to.
Despite playing 39 times in all competitions for the Blues last season, very few of these involved consecutive 90 minute appearances within a week.
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Thomas Tuchel knew better when it came to Reece James’ injury record
This is exactly what Tuchel asked of the full-back though, and has ultimately played the price as he sweats on his availability for the rest of the World Cup.
The most frustrating part for everyone involved is that the manager knows James well, after working alongside him at Stamford Bridge for a number of years.
In Tuchel’s 100 games in charge of the Blues, James missed 19, which included two separate hamstring injuries that have not abandoned him since.
Missing nearly 1/5th of games should have been a glaring indicator that it would be a risk to continue to ask for regular 90 minute appearances from the Chelsea captain.
Enzo Maresca was criticised throughout his tenure at Stamford Bridge due to using James in the centre of midfield, rather than right-back.
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However, the lower physical demands placed on a player alongside Moises Caicedo allowed him to feature more regularly, and make a big impact in major games.
The 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge against Arsenal was dominated by talk of Caicedo vs Declan Rice, although the best performing midfielder on the day was James.
Tuchel is a fantastic manager, and is the highest-quality one that England have had in recent memory.
However, his misuse of James could have a drastic effect on the Three Lions’ chances of winning the tournament, as well as his chances of hitting the ground running under Xabi Alonso at Chelsea.
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