Rio Ferdinand and Glenn Hoddle hit the nail on the head when they suggested Reece James could play as a centre-back for Chelsea or England.
In a recent Between the Lines episode, Hoddle and Ferdinand were compiling their Three Lions squad for this summer’s European Championship finals.
James made the cut, but was included as a central defender rather than his customary full-back position.
“I’ve seen Reece James play that role at a younger age; he was outstanding,” admitted Hoddle.
“I think eventually he could play there.”
Ferdinand agreed, saying: “I see Reece James playing in that position. If you want to play a three and be able to come out and be comfortable in wide areas.”
Reece’s different positional pieces
All of this was theoretical of course. However, Thomas Tuchel took this into real life by deploying James in his back three for the last two games.
Coincidentally, both matches have been against Leicester City. First in the FA Cup final and then during Tuesday’s Premier League victory.
On both occasions, the 21-year-old looked completely at home in his new role.
There were some uncomfortable moments, like the pass he made to put Mateo Kovacic in trouble and ultimately allowing Leicester to score midweek.
But on the whole, James settled into his surroundings excellently.
He was also tasked with man handling Jamie Vardy in the cup finale, a task that was well accomplished.
Planning for the future
Tuchel may only have been trialling this tactical change, one that included moving Cesar Azpilicueta into wing-back.
It certainly seems like a viable option moving forward, especially when Azpilicueta calls time on his glittering Chelsea career.
Gareth Southgate might look fondly upon this as well with the Euros looming and less than a week to pick his 26-man squad.
With his freshly demonstrated flexibility, it would be surprising if James didn’t make the grade.
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