Reece James made up for lost time by scoring on his first start in nearly 10 weeks yesterday, and it was a vital goal too as it came after a half when Burnley had proven to be testing opponents. However once the 22-year-old had found the net, the floodgates opened and we ran out 4-0 winners.
It is a victory and goal James spoke about after the game.‘It was a very enjoyable win, coming away from home and winning 4-0, but the scoreline doesn’t reflect the game,’ he admitted.‘That was a very tough first half. Burnley set up very well and made it difficult to play. Sometimes in games like this you need the one goal to break the deadlock and then everyone settles, and today we got that.’
James’ goal was expertly crafted, as he manoeuvred the Burnley defenders to make space for an angled, low shot into the far side of the goal. Eight minutes later, Kai Havertz had two goals to his name.‘It obviously helps the team when it was 0-0 minutes ago and then you are 3-0 up, it gives everyone a bit of freedom,’ said James.‘The last few games we have picked up a bit of momentum against two tough teams. We have come off the back of losing to Liverpool which was hard to take but even so, there are still many more competitions this season.‘You can’t dwell on setbacks and disappointments. We lost [the Carabao Cup final] and have to take it on the chin. It is in the past now and we have to look forward.’
For James, that means looking forward to regular matches once again.‘It has been a while since I have played in the Premier League and I am happy to be back fit again and to help the team out. I picked up a bit of a knock [against Burnley] but it is alright now and we move on to the next game.’That next game comes on Thursday night, when we have another away game in the Premier League, against bottom club Norwich.