The English right-back scored the second goal against Arsenal in the weekend as Chelsea made it two wins from two games in the Premier League.
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Chelsea have made a great start to the new Premier League season, winning both their opening matches. The latest victory against their city rivals Arsenal would have been extra special for the Blues. New signing Romelu Lukaku opened the scoring in his second Chelsea debut and for the second year in a row, Reece James marked the team’s maiden away game of the season with a thumping strike. Those two strikes were enough to see out Arsenal on Sunday. James started at wing-back for Thomas Tuchel’s men at the Emirates and was heavily involved throughout an impressive first half. He also played a huge role in Lukaku’s opening goal.
On the defensive front, James has been equally impressive as he helped the visitors register another clean sheet. The 21-year-old later reflected on a positive performance against their London rivals. “It’s obviously great to score for my club against such tough opposition and to help the team to win today is a great feeling,” he was quoted as saying by the club’s website. “We started so well and so sharply, got the two fast goals early on and that helped settle the game down.
“We knew it was going to be a hard place to come with their fans back in the stadium and because the start of the season is always hard to get going but we did really well to get the away win. It’s a massive derby against a very big rival so to get three points was very special.”
Reece James’s fourth senior goal for Chelsea came on the same day that Lukaku scored his first. The young full-back was particularly impressed with the Belgian’s all-round display on his second debut. “His performance speaks for itself,” he continued. “I don’t really need to say too much because everyone saw how well he played today, how he uses his body and bullies players. I’m very happy he’s here. He showed his strengths and qualities with how good he is and how he scores goals. He’s a great addition to our team.”
There was a spot of bother for James towards the closing stages of the game when he required on-field treatment following a nasty collision with Nuno Tavares. “Yeah it’s alright,” he replied when asked about it. “I was a bit shocked at the time but it’s fine. I knew what happened. I got a kick in the face but that’s just part of football.’
Chelsea will next travel to Anfield – a clash that will bring together two teams that are yet to drop a point or concede a goal in the league this season. “Liverpool have been up there at the top of the Premier League for the last few seasons so we know going there will be a very tough game,” added James.
“We need to prepare right and bring the same intensity as today into that game but our team is very strong. We have a number of top players in each position so when one top player comes off, there’s another one replacing them, which keeps the competition really high.
“I wouldn’t say there’s any pressure on us right now. We have to take it game by game but obviously our aim is to win every week. Everybody here is ambitious and wants to win the title but we just have to take things slowly right now.”
