After a successful loan spell at Wigan last season, Chelsea defender Reece James has now seemingly caught the eye of Newcastle United and Leeds United.
Frank Lampard previously lauded Chelsea defender Reece James as a player of ‘real quality’ and one who has shown his ‘talent’ as Newcastle and Leeds seemingly admire him as a player.
The Sun has claimed that Newcastle United manager Steve Bruce will be trying to bring the 19-year-old to St James’ Park in January, with Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa an admirer of the full-back.
James is a player of serious quality and those are words which are echoed by Lampard, who would have watched him from afar when he was on loan in the Championship last season, and from what he sees from him now at Stamford Bridge.
Given Chelsea’s transfer ban and the production line of youngsters that are being given a chance to shine, both Newcastle and Leeds would find it hard to secure his services, even tougher for Leeds given that they are in the second-tier.
But if both clubs didn’t know it already, Lampard is a big admirer of the fullback, who is an absolute powerhouse in defence.
“Reece James at 19-years-old made his Chelsea debut and scored a goal and supplied two assists,” Lampard told Chelsea’s official website. “His game will get much better. He has been out for a long time and he has only played minimal minutes in the under-23’s.
“But Reece’s performances last year for Wigan, when he was in the Team of the Year in the Championship, showed the talent he has got and he is going to be a big player for this club.
“He has got a great player to look up to in Cesar Azpilicueta who is in his position, who is in his position. He showed his real quality on the ball, so that’s just the start for Reece.”
James stood out like a sore thumb for a Wigan side that survived relegation from the Championship last season, as injuries have kept him out during the early part of this campaign for Chelsea.
There’s no doubt that Newcastle will be hoping they can still secure his services in some capacity when the winter transfer window re-opens, and if they do then they’ll have a player that has the ability to make a big difference at the back.
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