Former Chelsea captain Gary Cahill raved about one current Blues star after his performance in the win against Manchester United.
Chelsea beat Man Utd 1-0 at Stamford Bridge on Friday night to secure a vital three points.
Marc Cucurella’s second-half header helped lift the Blues up to fourth position in the Premier League table, so the race for Champions League qualification will go down to the final day of the season next Sunday.
If Enzo Maresca’s side win away against Nottingham Forest, they’ll be in next season’s Champions League.
Chelsea’s victory against Man Utd was their final match of the campaign at home. Interestingly, the team’s record suggests they’ve finally made Stamford Bridge a bit of a fortress again.
| Matches played | Wins | Draws | Losses | Goals scored | Goals against | Points |
| 19 | 12 | 5 | 2 | 35 | 18 | 41 |
Gary Cahill calls Reece James one of the best full-backs in Europe
Retired defender Gary Cahill, who enjoyed seven stellar years at Chelsea, praised Reece James after his impressive performance against Man Utd.
The 25-year-old Blues captain returned to the starting line-up and supplied the assist for the winning goal with a sublime cross.
According to Cahill, James is one of the best full-backs in Europe when he’s fit and firing.
When discussing Chelsea star James, Cahill told Stadium Astro: “Let’s hope he stays fit because, make no mistake, a fully fit Reece James is one of the best full-backs in Europe.
“Sometimes in this formation, because the left-back comes inside, he’s stuck there as a back three. I like to see him when he gets forward because of what we’ve just seen for that goal. The quality that he possesses. His delivery from wide areas.”
James, who was making his 25th appearance of the season, stood up for Chelsea when they needed him in a tense match against Man Utd. He provided a beautiful assist with the kind of cross that supporters are used to seeing but is very difficult.
Marc Cucurella praised Reece James’ influence at Chelsea after Friday night’s win under the lights at Stamford Bridge.
In 2025, Maresca has been fairly cautious with James’ minutes, which makes sense when you weigh up his injury record. Therefore, we’ll be intrigued to see if he starts both the final day of the Premier League season and the Conference League final because they’re very close together.
Reece James is essential to Chelsea
Even though James has had an up and down time because of frequent injuries, he’s still a major fan favourite.
While Man Utd star Mason Mount was jeered by Chelsea fans for leaving the club, James is one academy graduate who’s stayed loyal and is now the club captain.
Journalist Fabrizio Romano reports via X that Chelsea have never consider getting rid of James despite transfer speculation.
If James can stay fit moving forward, we’ve got no doubt he’ll emerge again as a key player in the starting XI. For Maresca, he must be starting to realise his captain needs to be at right-back rather than in central midfield.
