James back for Chelsea but Hudson-Odoi still out

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Callum Hudson-Odoi will remain sidelined for Chelsea this weekend and Christian Pulisic is a doubt, but Reece James is back in the squad.

James and Hudson-Odoi resumed training this week following their respective injuries, raising hopes of a return to action in the west London derby against Brentford.

However, while James is available again, Hudson-Odoi is still being troubled by an Achilles injury and is also now struggling with a back problem.


Pulisic featured in three recent matches for the United States and might sit out Saturday’s game.

But Thiago Silva, who has been on international duty with Brazil, is fit enough to be involved against the Bees.

Boss Thomas Tuchel explained: “Thiago is a bit different to Christian, I have to say.

“Thiago did not play the third match for Brazil, came back a day earlier and did not have the same jetlag.

 

“Thiago was here yesterday, trained today and feels very good. He’s available for tomorrow.

“For Christian, we need to decide. He did not train today. We decided to give him another recovery session.

“He was very, very tired because of the huge time difference and he played 85 minutes one-and-a-half days ago.

“We need to figure out if it (selecting Pulisic against Brentford) makes sense and, if it makes sense, for how many minutes.

“It’s always a challenge after these breaks because everyone was all around the world. Some of them played a lot and are jetlagged and so on.

“So it’s always a challenge and you’re never 100% sure where you are. We try to regroup together.”

Meanwhile, Tuchel has insisted he remains confident Antonio Rudiger will stay at Chelsea despite the defender being linked with Barcelona.