Chelsea captain Reece James in attendance as Emenalo, Ngumoha feature for U18s in late win v Reading 

Chelsea's first team captain Reece James was among the onlookers as the Blues left it late to beat Reading 2-0 in an U18 Premier League fixture at Cobham Training Center on Saturday afternoon.

England national teamer James has had an injury plagued season and is currently inactive after undergoing surgery to fix a recurring hamstring problem, which has limited his appearances to nine across all competitions in 2023-2024.

Chelsea youth team insider, Chelsea Youth has informed that Cobham product James watched parts of today's U18s game between Chelsea and Reading, adding that it's very common to see those with academy connections in the men's first-team building come over to watch and talk. 

Two Golden Eaglets-eligible players were in action for Chelsea U18s, with schoolboy winger Rio Ngumoha playing for 67 minutes and Landon Emenalo entering the game as a substitute with one minute of normal time remaining.

Alllnigeriasoccer.com exclusively reported in January that Landon - son of Nigeria's 1994 World Cup star Michael Emenalo - has been offered a scholarship ahead of next season.

The 16-year-old has already trained with the first team this year and made his debut for the development squad in his final season as a schoolboy. 

Ngumoha has also rubbed shoulders with Chelsea first team players and debuted for the development squad against Colchester United in January. 

The Blues secured a victory against the Royals thanks to two late goals from Ato Ampah and Frankie Runham. 

Ifeanyi Emmanuel

Copyright ANS
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from allnigeriasoccer.com