Vinicius Junior of Real Madrid is challenged by Reece James of Chelsea during the UEFA Champions League Quarter Final Leg Two match in April 2022. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)
Chelsea right-back Reece James has named Rafael Leao, Vinicius Junior and Sadio Mane as the three toughest players that he has played against. The Blues have been linked with a move for Leao for some time now.
In the right-back’s Q&A on Twitter (h/t Football. London), he was asked to name the hardest player he had faced in his career to which the Cobham graduate had the following answer:
“3 hardest players I’ve ever played against are all left wingers! Vinicius Jr, Leao and Mane!”
Hopefully, the Portugal international is paying attention to his tweet. For James, Leao joining the Blues would mean one less world-class attacker he can come up against in the future.
Considering he plays as a right-back, it was pretty much obvious that the answer would be consisting of left-wingers. He has made a name for himself as a complete full-back but you don’t become one of the best before proving your worth against the very best.
James and Leao came up against each other in the Champions League group-stage game. The Blues won both the fixtures against AC Milan, 3-0 and 2-0 respectively, with the England international keeping the Portuguese at bay-both in west London and Milan.
As for Junior, the right-back has come up against him three times in his career, all being in the Champions League. Last season both the clubs faced off in the Quarter-finals and the Brazilian and James were the best players for the teams.
Both the players matched each other evenly and provided some very entertaining duals in both legs. It was, however, Los Blancos that won the tie, winning 5-4 on aggregate.
Mane and James have faced each other six times on the pitch. The former Liverpool forward has come out the better player, winning four games including the Carabao Cup and FA Cup finals last season.
The Chelsea right-back is currently out injured. He has been our best player so far this season and hopefully, he can recover before the season resumes. His absence has been felt on the pitch, and fans will hope for a better second half to the season with James back on the pitch.
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