London [United Kingdom], April 26 : Chelsea's caretaker manager Frank Lampard has ruled out the young English left-back Reece James for the entire season.
James featured in Chelsea's clash with Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-final match at Stamford Bridge for the entire game. It seems as if the intensity of the game, as well as the need to play after every three days, has taken a toll on the full-back. James suffered a hamstring injury during the game and he still tried to turn around the fate of the tie in Chelsea's favour. The Blues ended up losing the tie by 4-0 and with that, they lost James for the entire season as well.
Even after suffering from a hamstring injury James during the game, James was one of the standout players for Chelsea in the entire game and Lampard praised the youngster for the efforts he managed to put in.
"Knowing him as a lad I'm not surprised. I think Reece was also possibly the best player on the pitch with a dodgy hamstring so it goes to show his level as a player."
"With Reece, we have to find a way that we can get all that capacity he's got and get more constant with his availability at times because he's such a top player. Mason is the same, he has been playing through [an injury] because he wants to contribute to the club and players who really want to contribute to Chelsea are what it's all about," Frank Lampard said as quoted by Chelsea FC.
James's desire to perform even in pain defined the pride of a player who loves playing football.
'If you don't have that type of desire then you can't be a top player for Chelsea. So those two are the epitome of that."
'I don't think it's about loving Chelsea necessarily,' Lampard clarified. 'It's about having a pride in what you do and loving playing football, and understanding that it takes real motivation and desire and the basics before you even get to the finer details. It should be a prerequisite for players playing in a team when you want to be a top team in the Premier League," Lampard added.
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