The newly appointed skipper was withdrawn in the 76th minute (Pictures: Getty)
Mauricio Pochettino has allayed fears that Reece James came off against Liverpool due to an injury problem while he says Kepa Arrizabalaga is exploring a move away from Chelsea.
The west Londoners opened their Premier League campaign with a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge and fell behind in the 18th minute when Luis Duiz prodded home Mohamed Salah’s excellent cross.
Liverpool thought they had a second but Salah’s effort was ruled out for offside by VAR before Axel Disasi levelled the scores from close range and Ben Chilwell had his own effort chalked off.
Chelsea dominated the second half and enjoyed 66% possession – the highest any team has managed against Liverpool since Jurgen Klopp took over – but neither side could find a winner.
James, who has been named as captain following Cesar Azpilicueta’s departure over the summer, was withdrawn in the 76th minute prompting fears his injury woes had returned, but Pochettino says the decision was taken merely as a precaution.
Asked why James was taken off at his post-match press conference, Pochettino replied: ‘Because he was tired.
‘The first thing that we were doing when we arrived is to assess and analyse all the players from the past and he was injured for three or four months.
January signing Malo Gusto replaced James late on (Picture: Getty)
‘And pre-season is always tough – and it was tough for him. But of course we didn’t want to take any risks and that is why, around 80 minutes, we wanted to keep away a little bit the risk.’
On why he picked James as Chelsea’s new skipper, he added: ‘After nearly six weeks working I think we decided, with the club, to give the armband to him because I think he’s the perfect profile.
‘He’s a fantastic player, he’s a fantastic boy. He loves Chelsea, he’s a leader, the team-mates respect him and everyone in the club respects him and the fans love him also. I think he’s a perfect player to be the captain.’
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Kepa, meanwhile, was not involved in Sunday’s game despite featuring heavily in pre-season under Pochettino and looks set to join Real Madrid on loan as a replacement for the injured Thibaut Courtois.
Asked about the Spaniard’s absence, the Chelsea boss explained: ‘The reason I explained to your colleagues before, he asked to explore different situations, different possibilities.
‘That is why yesterday we were talking and I think for us the decision is to have all the players that are committed and thinking about being at Chelsea for the season and that is why he wasn’t in the squad. We’ll see [what happens], if we have something to inform we will inform.’
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The newly appointed skipper was withdrawn in the 76th minute against Liverpool.
