Chelsea have suffered a possible double defensive injury blow ahead of Sunday’s Premier League meeting with Liverpool.
Thomas Tuchel’s side already have Ben Chilwell and Thiago Silva on the treatment table and now look set to be without Reece James on Sunday afternoon at Stamford Bridge.
The 22-year-old was forced off in the 26th minute of the match during tonight’s match with Brighton and required assistance as he hobbled off the pitch.
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Early indications suggested James sustained a hamstring injury following a challenge from Yves Bissouma, which looks likely to leave Chelsea without three key members of their defensive unit for the visit of Liverpool.
Central defender Andreas Christensen could also be missing, having been replaced at half-time.
The Denmark international went down five minutes prior to James' departure, but was sent back on to the pitch by the medical department after being assessed on the sidelines.
Trevoh Chalobah was introduced in his place for the second-half, which could just be a precautionary measure by the Chelsea boss as the club look to avoid aggravating Christensen's issue.
One clear positive for Tuchel's side, however, is that N'Golo Kante was named on the substitutes bench and came on with 23 minutes left to play in the match
The French midfielder lasted 63 minutes of Chelsea's recent Premier League win over Aston Villa before being withdrawn after being unable to continue.
Kai Havertz also returned to the matchday squad after a period in isolation, though Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Timo Werner remain absent.
