“One of the best” – Maresca’s praise for world class Chelsea star | OneFootball

With a year of fitness under his belt, we can finally start dropping the qualifiers and say it clearly: Reece James is one of, if not the best right back in the world.

The fact that he’s also a very handy midfielder capable of going up against the very best in the game is just a bonus. Without wanting to jinx it, the full back might finally finish a season without injuries and then go on into the summer to take the England role that should have been his for 5 years at this point.

Enzo Maresca on growing James influence

Reece James dominates midfield. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

Enzo Maresca was asked about his captain in the press conference today ahead of Chelsea’s game against Aston Villa, and as you’d expect the manager was full of praise of James:

“I think he’s growing in terms of leadership, he’s growing also in terms of players, because he’s playing more minutes, more minutes, more minutes,” the manager said.

“And this is the reason why we are all happy, first of all, because he can be fit, he can be healthy. And then because we know that he can behave also as a leader.

“He’s one of the main players for different reasons. He’s an academy player, he’s from the house, he’s the captain. When he’s fit, he’s one of the best players we have, no doubt. So for sure, for me personally, he’s a main player.”

In other news…

Cole Palmer is another player who we need in top form if we want to win a major trophy this year. We really hope this Saturday sees him go up a level as he gets back to full fitness.

The manager was also asked about the form of his star man Palmer and how it compared to that of Morgan Rogers, Aston Villa’s creative hub and Palmer’s old friend.