Reece James

Many players have had injury woes leading up to the 2024 Euros, but Reece James might have the worst luck of all. He is an exceptionally gifted player, and an argument can be made that when healthy he is England’s best right back. At just 24 years of age, he has captained Chelsea and was a part of their record breaking defense that won the Champions League in 2021. He is a brilliant defensive player, boasting impressive pace, physicality, and an ability to read the game. He is very comfortable playing the role of an inverted wingback, which would provide England’s already lethal offense even more support. Although James’ career has been very fruitful thus far, it has also been riddled with injuries. This has limited him to only 16 appearances for England, including a mere 5 minutes of playing time during the Euro 2024 qualifiers. During the 2019/2020 season, he missed 26 games. The following season he only missed 9 games, which was by far his best season injury wise. Recently his injuries have kept him off the pitch for the majority of the time, with him missing 20, 25, and 33 games in the 2021/2022, 2022/2023, and 2022/2024 seasons respectively. We would love to see a full strength Reece James representing his country during the Euros, but we simply cannot see that happening given his lack of match fitness.