Reece James urged to switch positions due to form of Liverpool star

Frank Sinclair says Reece James might have to think about switching position if he wants to play regularly for England.

James, who last month signed a huge new deal at Stamford Bridge, has made 20 appearances for Chelsea this season after starring on loan at Wigan last term.

The 20-year-old has started for Chelsea where he left off with Wigan this season and Blues boss Frank Lampard has had nothing but praise for the full-back.

“Reece is a weapon for us in attack with his crossing – we need to get on the end of them more – but he is also very solid defensively,” Lampard said

“When you think of his age, you can get excited about Reece. There’s a lot more he can do, obviously, but I’m really pleased with how he’s developing at the minute.

Sinclair is also a fan of the youngster, but he is well aware of Trent Alexander-Arnold’s standing at Liverpool.

Alexander-Arnold has managed a staggering 28 assists over the course of last season and this season and looks certain to be Gareth Southgate’s first-choice right-back at Euro 2020.

That has led Sinclair to urge James to try and change position to become a regular in Southgate’s starting XI.

“If I was Reece, I might be clever and try and to start playing centre-half or something because Alexander-Arnold is going to be a hard man to lodge out of that position the way that he’s playing at the moment,” Sinclair told Genting Bet.

“But it’s internationals and you need world-class players in every position if you want to really seriously challenge at that level.

 

 

 

“So to have someone like Reece James, who will fight for that second slot as the natural right-back, that’s a good thing for England.

“The one thing about Reece that will get him into England squads regularly is his adaptability, he can play centre-half, he can play right-back, he can play central midfield.

“He came back off a great loan period at Wigan, where for the second half of that loan spell, he played in midfield and was unbelievable in there as well.

“When I spoke to Jody Morris after a FA Youth Cup victory for Chelsea a couple of seasons ago, he touched on how good Reece James was.

“He was saying Callum Hudson-Odoi gets a lot of the plaudits, but Reece James is just unbelievable.

“So now he’s coming to fruition and I can see him kicking on and being in Chelsea’s team for the next ten years or so and being a real mainstay.”