Liam Rosenior's Chelsea are currently back on track for securing one of the top four spots in the Premier league as they sit fifth, three points behind fourth placed Manchester United.

Although injuries have been a major problem for the Blues this season, with long-term injuries to Levi Colwill, Romeo Lavia, and Dario Essugo, and an injury-ridden season for the Blues' two top performers, Cole Palmer and Reece James.

Both Palmer and James have had a pretty uneventful campaign since the start of this season, which made former manager Enzo Maresca's job even tougher and led to his eventual sacking. Still, even with Rosenior coming in as his replacement, the duo have been absent on some big occasions for the Chels since the new year.

Most recently, James picked up a minor injury  which forced him to miss two back to back games against Arsenal and Wolverhampton, as the Blues crashed out of the Carabao cup semifinals against the Gunners, loosing 4-2 on aggregate.

Rosenior previously talked about James' injury, saying that his skipper would be ready for the midweek clash against Leeds. Still, on Monday, the gaffer provided a more cautious update on the full back, saying (h/t AOL), "Reece is fit. A small issue, but he’s feeling unwell today."

According to sources, the illness has reportedly spread amongst the Blues' staff, and James is the only player to be affected by it as Rosenior talked about the situation saying, "The staff have been down, my coaching staff, staff around the club.
"Fortunately, only Reece from the players is affected at the moment. It’s something we’re just trying to work on at the moment."

Rumours of a conspiracy were also circulating the club, which the manager brushed off, saying, "It's not a conspiracy, it's true. Hopefully, he’ll be well enough to play tomorrow."

Despite his injury problems James has been a key player for the Chels this season both as a full back and a central midfielder while leading from the front as he netted twice and provided four assists for the Blues in the league this season.

Rosenior would definitely hope his captain is fully fit and performing at the highest level in the final laps of the season. Still, both Rosenior and Maresca have been cautious about James' fitness, managing his minutes throughout the season, and it seems that will be the case for the Chelsea captain until the end of this season.

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