With club captain James out of action since August and Lavia restricted to three previous appearances due to an injury picked up early in the campaign – the last of which had come against Brighton in September – the Blues have had to contend without the pair for much of the season.

However, both were named in Maresca’s starting line-up for yesterday’s narrow 2-1 defeat to Liverpool before being withdrawn as a precaution early in the second half. Their returns provided a silver lining for the Blues at Anfield, with the duo coming off the pitch unscathed.

‘I am very pleased,’ said our head coach when asked about James and Lavia's reintroduction to the team. ‘I am very happy for Reece, for Romeo, for both of them. And hopefully, they can be fit.

‘For Reece and Romeo, it was 45 minutes to an hour maximum [on the pitch]. But I was a bit afraid to give them more minutes, so I decided to change them after 50 to 55 minutes.’

Unfortunately, the pair were unable to make a winning return to the side; Curtis Jones’ goal shortly before they left the pitch ultimately proved decisive as we dropped points away from home in the Premier League for the first time this season.

Despite the defeat, Maresca saw plenty to be pleased about, in addition to welcoming two members of his squad back into the fold, as we pushed the league leaders hard right to the final whistle.

‘There were many positives, probably the only thing which wasn’t positive was the result,’ added the Italian.

‘Overall I think the performance was very good on the ball. Off the ball, we pressed high, man-to-man on the ball. I think the team played very good.

‘The good thing was to go there to Anfield, not change our style, try to win the game and we tried that until the end.’

The return of James and Lavia, which gives Maresca a full squad to work with for the first time since arriving at Stamford Bridge in the summer, comes at a timely period in the season.

The games are starting to come thick and fast as we enter the busy winter schedule, with midweek Conference League and Carabao Cup ties alongside Premier League commitments. That run begins with Thursday’s trip to Greece to face Panathinaikos in the former, giving Chelsea a chance to quickly move on from Sunday’s loss.

‘From now on we have a game every three days, until Christmas probably, so we don’t stop. The good thing is that when you win or when you lose, in three days is another game.’