Chelsea are preparing to keep up their push for a spot in next season’s Champions League with a fixture against recently-crowned Premier League champions Liverpool.
The Blues will first have to navigate a trip to Sweden and a Conference League semi-final first leg against Djurgarden, however are expected to be victors in that tie.
The majority of the attention is instead on the remaining four league fixtures, and while Chelsea sit fifth they could be out of the desired spots in the table by the time they kick off at Stamford Bridge.
Even though Liverpool have already wrapped up the league title, they will no doubt pose one of the biggest threats to Chelsea of the season, and their best XI will be needed if they are to get anything from the game.
Many believe this would see Reece James starting at right-back, rather than the midfield role Enzo Maresca prefers him in.
Reece James will worry as Premier League announce referee for Chelsea vs Liverpool
The club captain has not actually started either of the last two league games, with the recent win over Everton seeing Moises Caicedo feature at right-back to great success.
If James does lead the Blues out on Sunday, the man in the middle will be someone he has had his run ins with in the past.
As per the Premier League’s official announcement, Chelsea’s game against Liverpool will be officiated by Simon Hooper.
Adrian Holmes and Simon Long will be the assistant referees, whilst John Brooks will be in charge of VAR for the standout fixture of the weekend’s games.
Reece James’ nightmare appearance with Hooper as referee
Hooper has refereed two Chelsea games this season so far, with those being wins at home over Newcastle United and Wolves.
These games have not been short of cards though. The Blues have picked up 10 bookings across those matches, with their opponents racking up five.
Last season though, James was sent off in a 4-1 defeat to Newcastle, again officiated by Hooper. The England international’s second yellow came following a mistake, where he pulled back Anthony Gordon after a miscontrol.
Given the importance of the final three fixtures after the Liverpool game, Chelsea can simply not afford to lose any of their crucial first team players, with James certainly being part of that list.
