Chelsea Handed Huge Double Injury Boost for Decisive Fixtures

Chelsea interim manager Calum McFarlane revealed that both Reece James and the scarcely spotted Levi Colwill could both feature as soon as Monday’s Premier League clash with Nottingham Forest.

The Blues have been without their talismanic skipper James since he pulled up with a hamstring issue in the middle of March. The versatile fullback has missed the club’s previous four Premier League fixtures, all of which were lost as Liam Rosenior paid the price with his job.

Colwill has been out for even longer. The commanding center back sat out just three Premier League matches last season while cementing himself as Enzo Maresca’s first-choice leader of the backline. Colwill carried that form through last summer’s Club World Cup, which Chelsea won, only to be struck down with a torn ACL in the first week of preseason training.

The 23-year-old has not featured since that triumphant final over Paris Saint-Germain in July but is eyeing up a seismic return.

Injury Updates for Reece James, Levi Colwill

Levi Colwill (left) and Reece James. — Levi Colwill (left) and Reece James last played together on U.S. at the Club World Cup. | Andrew J. Clark/ISI Photos/Getty Images

“We’ve got Reece [James] back in training, Levi [Colwill] is back in training, both looking good,” McFarlane told assembled media on Friday, three days before Chelsea host Nottingham Forest in an unusually early slot on Monday. “A little bit away to the game, so we’ll see how they do day by day, but both are looking promising.”

When pushed on whether both could play a role against the Europa League semifinalists, McFarlane reasoned: “We’re taking it day by day, and obviously Levi’s had a long injury.

“Reece had a really good run and has been injured again, and there’s a lot of games still to play, so we don’t want to push too much, but we’re just taking it day by day and see, hopefully, they come through.”

The prospect of welcoming back two of the club’s best defenders offers hope of a strong end to a season which has been undermined by a leaky rearguard. Chelsea’s tally of 45 goals conceded is the same of their upcoming opponents, 16th-placed Nottingham Forest. This isn’t even a question of Robert Sánchez letting the side down from between the posts; Chelsea have conceded the 14th-most shots on target across the entire division, even more than relegation battling Tottenham Hotspur.

McFarlane Takes Realistic View of Champions League Race

Calum McFarlane will take charge of Chelsea. | Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC/Getty Images

McFarlane has been keen to stress the positivity around Chelsea over recent days. Booking a spot in the FA Cup final certainly lifted the mood which has been boosted even further by the potential return of two England internationals. Enzo Fernández was even able to visit his favorite city, Madrid, during the recent time off dished out by the interim coach.

However, the club’s Premier League positioning is not quite so rosy. McFarlane inherited a team which has sunk to eighth in the table, 10 points adrift of the top five with only four matches of the campaign left to play.

While he maintained the illusion that Champions League qualification was still possible, the inexperienced coach admitted that he has put any thought of the competition out of his mind.

“We just have to win our games and not worry about anything else,” McFarlane sensibly stressed. “I think even further to that, we have to make sure our performance levels are right and the results will come. We have to just focus on ourselves and the next game and the next day and the next training session.”

Chelsea’s Remaining Fixtures for 2025–26

Date	Opponent	Venue
Monday, May 4	Nottingham Forest	Stamford Bridge
Saturday, May 9	Liverpool	Anfield
Saturday, May 16	Manchester City (FA Cup final)	Wembley Stadium
Tuesday, May 19	Tottenham	Stamford Bridge
Sunday, May 24	Sunderland	Stadium of Light

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