Chelsea boss Emma Hayes has detailed Lauren James' development at the club and how she fought back from injuries to nail down a starting spot for the Blues.
The youngster scored her first-ever goal for the Lionesses on Thursday evening against Korea Republic and put in a player of the match performance. James only earned her first senior cap for the Lionesses in September last year and has seen her influence at Chelsea grow this season.
The 21-year-old arrived at Chelsea from Manchester United in 2021 but her first season with the club was hindered by injuries and Hayes has carefully eased her into the team, building her for the long-term rather than short-term. James was named in the starting line-up for the Lionesses in their first game of the 2023 Arnold Clark Cup tournament and the Chelsea boss believes there's plenty more to come from her.
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“She’s fabulous to work with, she really is," Hayes told ITV before kick-off. "She’s deserving of everything she’s getting at the moment.
“It’s growing (her contributions). I think the fact we’re able to keep her on the pitch week in week out is only going to keep adding value. I think there is so much more to come from her, but she’s having to work on so many elements of her game that we can’t expect everything at once."
James currently operates and plays her best football off the right. However, the Chelsea boss says there are areas of her game she can work on that could see her be utilised more centrally.
Hayes continued: “I think right now (her best position) is on the right. It’s more natural and more comfortable. I think long term if she’s to play centrally, there are things she has to learn tactically.
"Particularly linking with the nine, but she can do it. The freedom she gets on the right allows her to express herself with her best strengths, particularly her 1v1 play.
“We’ve spent hundreds of hours teaching her about why we have to take the right amount of time. She’s listened, she’s applied everything and she’s not there yet, she’s still got to add a lot more to it. But she’s going in the right direction."
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