England defender Reece James has confirmed that he will miss the World Cup due to a knee injury..
James suffered the injury while playing for Chelsea against AC Milan in the Champions League on October 11, and it was later revealed that the right-back would need to wear a knee brace for a month.
The general consensus was that the 22-year-old would need eight weeks to recover from the injury, effectively ruling him out of contention until England reached the quarter-final stage..
However, at the end of October, James insisted that he was still hopeful of being able to compete in the tournament, telling The Sun: “I need to keep working hard in the coming weeks to see where I stand on call-up day.
“I’ll try not to rule myself out. It is still slow and in its infancy. I’ve been in rehab for two weeks and am still taking things day by day..
Nonetheless, it was reported on Wednesday morning that Three Lions manager Gareth Southgate had spoken with James to inform him that he would not be included in his 26-man squad..
Although Southgate will not officially name his squad until Thursday, James has confirmed on social media that he will not be traveling to Qatar.
On Twitter, James commented: “Devastated. I knew the turnaround to make the World Cup would be tight the moment I injured my knee, but I always believed it was possible.
“I’ve worked harder than I ever thought possible to give myself the best chance of going, and I truly believed I could contribute to the team..
“I recognized the risk on both sides, but it was one I was willing to take. Best wishes to the boys. I’ll be right back. Keep safe and send love.”
James has had a frustrating 11 months in terms of fitness, beginning with a hamstring injury last December that kept him out for two months.
Since the end of 2021, the academy graduate has missed 29 matches in total, and he will now try to recover in time for the Premier League’s return on Boxing Day.
According to the same report on Wednesday, Manchester City duo Kyle Walker and Kalvin Phillips, who have been nursing groin and shoulder injuries, respectively, are in contention to be named to the squad on Thursday..
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