When writing about Chelsea’s current wage bill, there is one eye watering number that really stands out.
Reece James is our joint best paid player, on £250,000 a week. The defender signed that deal in September 2022, with the hope that his injury nightmare was over. However, it’s been much the same since then – short periods in the team, long periods out.
It’s definitely a deal Chelsea wouldn’t do now, under the new wage structure put in place since then. They wouldn’t even have done it at the time, had they known he was going to feature so little.
But with 3 years left on it, there’s no much they can do.
His failure to feature in a competitive game so far this season is another bleak marker – he’s expected to be back after the international break, but we’ve long lost any faith in him staying fit for long.
The current management still rates Reece James highly as a player and as a leader in the dressing room. #Chelsea‘s intention remains to wait for, protect and support the player.
(@FabrizioRomano via YouTube) pic.twitter.com/THjaWgfdWt
— Chels HQ (@Chels_HQ) October 2, 2024
Fabrizio Romano brings interesting thoughts on James future
Transfer insider Fabrizio Romano was asked today for his thoughts on James and his situation, and reported back on what he was hearing from inside Chelsea.
Despite the whispers – and perhaps the desires of some who want to see those wages spent elsewhere – Romano says there’s no intention of giving up on James.
He’s still “rated highly as a player” (we don’t see why that ever would have been in doubt), and Chelsea’s “intention remains to wait for, protect and support the player.”
That quote reads almost word for word as it would have come from someone at the club. Whatever their regrets may be about the contract, there’s not going to be any interest in buying him now, so the smart thing to do is to emphasis how important he can be and how much the club are behind him.
If interest develops down the line, great. If James overcomes his fitness issues, even better.
