Reece James expected to make Chelsea return ahead of Carabao Cup final

Reece James is expected to return to the Chelsea fold this week after missing the last seven weeks through injury, just in time to potentially have a role in the Carabao Cup final against Liverpool.

The England international suffered a hamstring tear towards the end of December and has been unavailable since. After Ben Chilwell suffered a knee injury a month prior, the Blues have had to soldier on without their first choice wing-backs.

Thomas Tuchel’s men have pretty much fallen out of the Premier League title race in the last month, although they did scoop the FIFA Club World Cup. The Carabao Cup final against Liverpool also offers the chance to add another trophy to this season’s pile.

The Blues are likely to be handed a boost ahead of that game with the Daily Mail reporting that James should feature in one, if not both, of their two matches this week.

They host Lille in the first leg of their last 16 tie in the Champions League on Tuesday before Sunday’s showdown with Liverpool, and Chelsea are hopeful that the 22-year-old will at least be able to run out at Wembley.

In the red corner, Jurgen Klopp is still sweating over the availability of Diogo Jota after he sustained an ankle injury in last week’s Champions League win at Inter.

However, Roberto Firmino has been ruled out of the final after picking up a muscle problem at San Siro. High profile January signing Luis Diaz stepped up in their absence at the weekend, netting in Liverpool’s 3-1 win over Norwich.