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Reece James
Vishal Bhawani

Reece James Red Card: Chelsea Star Set To Miss Opening Matches of Next Premier League Season

ChelseaPremier LeagueReece James

Chelsea defender Reece James has been ruled out once more. He will miss the opening three games of the next Premier League season.

Reece James Red Card Incident

Following a confrontation with Joao Pedro of Brighton, James was sent off. Referee Michael Salisbury missed the original incident, but after a VAR review, the club captain was given a red card for kicking out Pedro.

With their 2-1 victory over Brighton on Wednesday night, Chelsea are closing up the season on a strong note and may just make it into Europe next year, but the suspension just makes their problems worse.

James will now serve a four-game suspension, which will consist of three games for violent behaviour and one extra game because it was James’ second red card of the year.

After receiving two bookings during Chelsea’s 4-1 loss to Newcastle in November, he received his first marching orders.

Reece James Red Card: What Mauricio Pochettino Said?

Not hiding his dismay, Mauricio Pochettino said that the sent-off was, to put it mildly, “painful.”

“Maybe itā€™s the frustration of him,” he told reporters. “But, yes, painful. Painful because it was a fantastic night of football and heā€™s our captain and a really important player. Iā€™m disappointed because now heā€™s going to miss the next game and maybe a few games in next season.”

Reece James Red Card: What’s Next?

Shortly, Chelsea have to win on Sunday in order to secure their sixth-place position. They do, however, have an opportunity to ascend much higher.

In the event that Tottenham loses against Sheffield United and Chelsea defeats Bournemouth, Pochettino’s team may advance to fifth place and qualify for the Europa League. But they must defeat the Cherries without James’s assistance.

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