Jude Bellingham and Rafael Leao have offered their response to Reece James' emotional social media post following his injury against Bournemouth. The defender was forced off in the second half, cutting short his return to competitive football.
James sustained a damaging knee injury in the away group stage game against AC Milan in October and was left out of the England World Cup squad as a result. He spent eight weeks in recovery and started against the Cherries but didn't even make it to the hour mark before going down once more.
Graham Potter revealed that the plan was for him to play around 60 minutes in his first competitive match back but that decision was taken out of his hands.
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Although he didn't send out a message regarding the injury itself, James took to social media on Wednesday to write: "2022 has been the toughest year to date. Just wanna thank you all for the support, none of you go unnoticed.
"It’s naturally effected me mentally, I’m currently just tryna deal with the cards I’ve been dealt. I hope your end of year is filled with peace, joy & happiness."
James spent some time out coming into 2022 with an injury picked up last season and has been in and out of fitness throughout, although he has arguably been Chelsea's best player when available.
Bellingham, who is a very good friend of James and the pair are largely inseparable when together for England, has responded to his message on social media, commenting a red love heart.
The 19-year-old is a transfer target for Chelsea heading into the new year and fans are hopeful of one day seeing James and Bellingham lining up for the Blues.
Rafael Leao, another transfer target for Chelsea, also replied to the message, tweeting: "Lets gooooo," with a handshake emoji and prayer emoji. Leao has previously been in contact with James via social media and it appears the pair have a great deal of mutual respect for one and other.
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