James, Colwill, Sancho, Palmer: Latest fitness news on Chelsea quartet vs Leicester City


Enzo Maresca will have an array of quality at his disposal to select from for Chelsea’s Premier League clash against Leicester City.

Chelsea return to club action following November’s international break which saw many players withdraw from their respective camps.

Filip Jorgensen, Malo Gusto, Wesley Fofana, Levi Colwill and Cole Palmer withdrew immediately, while Pedro Neto was given permission by Portugal to leave camp after their first Nations League match against Poland.

All have trained with the Blues following their returns to Cobham, as have Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez, who both returned late following their matches in South America for Ecuador and Argentina.

READ MORE: Why Enzo Maresca is ready to take calculated Chelsea fitness risk vs Leicester

With the club’s preparations complete and the Blues now Midlands bound, the fate of James, Colwill, Jadon Sancho, who was absent through illness and injury, and Palmer have been confirmed.

Here is the latest on the Chelsea and England quartet ahead of their trip to face Leicester City in the Premier League.

Reece James

The 24-year-old suffered a hamstring injury earlier this week in the build-up to Chelsea’s trip to Leicester.

James, 24, will undergo a scan next week to learn the extent of the problem, as reported by Matt Law of the Daily Telegraph.

Maresca hopes James will not be out for an extended period of time, but has told the defender to stay mentally strong.

“I know it’s not easy, but if every time he is getting an injury it becomes hard for him (mentally), for me it’s even worse. He has to accept that. He has to try to avoid it as much as he can.

James managed to play four games after returning, however he has faced another setback.James managed to play four games after returning, however he has faced another setback.

James managed to play four games after returning, however he has faced another setback. / IMAGO / Pro Sports Images

“But sometimes things happen even if you want to avoid them. This weekend he’s not available. Now we start to play every three days so it’s probably difficult he could be available for the Conference but hopefully he can be available soon.”

Levi Colwill

Colwill withdrew from England international duty for their Nations League matches against Greece and the Republic of Ireland.

The 21-year-old has featured in training since his return to Cobham and is ready to start against the Foxes alongside Wesley Fofana.

Jadon Sancho

After a handful of games on the sidelines because of illness and injury, Sancho is set to be in contention for Saturday’s fixture.

The 24-year-old was in positive mood in the final training session at Cobham on Friday after nutmegging Cole Palmer.

Sancho will be pushing for a starting role, however will face strong competition from Neto, who has been in fine form in recent weeks.

Cole Palmer

The 24-year-old is fit and ready to go against the Foxes. After nursing a knock from the draw to Manchester United at the beginning of November, Palmer withdrew as a precaution in order to take no risks and avoid a potential injury.

Maresca was unable to give insight into Chelsea’s conversation with the England staff over Palmer and Colwill’s withdrawals, admitting: “To be honest, we played Arsenal and then I left for one week so I don’t know about the conversation between the club and the national team.”


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