Jody Morris shares what he text to Chelsea’s Reece James after injury ruined his World Cup hopes
Former Chelsea coach and player Jody Morris has claimed to Sky Sports that he instantly texted Reece James after an injury ruled him out of the World Cup.
The 22-year-old suffered what seemed at the time a fairly innocuous knee injury at the San Siro, after yet another impressive display keeping Rafael Leao quiet.
However, a second diagnosis saw him ruled out for a number of months, ending any chance he had of making England’s World Cup squad.
Despite all of this, there was still late hope that he may be able to board the plane to Qatar.
James was reportedly growing confident that his rehabilitation had been going well enough that he may be able to return before the end of November, when England would likely still be in the tournament.
Morris texts James
However, it has been reported now that Gareth Southgate personally phoned him to inform him that he couldn’t risk his fitness by taking him to the competition.
This has obviously left the wing-back gutted, as shown in his statement confirming the news he wouldn’t be going.
Morris attempted to ease James’ woes by reminding him that his quality will see him have this opportunity a number more times.
He said: “I messaged Reece James instantly when [the injury] first happened and said, ‘listen, make sure you don’t come back too early just to make yourself fit for the World Cup. You’ve got another 15-16 years ahead of you’.”
Chelsea fans meanwhile will be quietly happy that he has not had his fitness severely risked, having seen just how far they have fallen since he fell to injury.
Graham Potter has struggled to find a suitable replacement so far, and it has also seen players like Raheem Sterling and Christian Pulisic limited as they try and fill the void.
