If there is caution in his voice, then that is understandable. Reece James seems to be back.
A new role in midfield for Chelsea, in combination with a first goal for England during the international break, suggests that the Blues Academy product has a number of difficult months and years behind it.
“It has been a rocky way, the past three years,” he says Sky Sports on a sun -drenched spring afternoon on Chelsea's Cobham Training Base.
“It now means a lot for me every time I go out on the field, especially because I have had so much disappointment during the trip. I am happy that I am back to help Chelsea and England.
“It has been a long time since I set up the English shirt. It was a great feeling to score my first international goal, I had waited a long time.
“Not many of my teammates had seen me score such a free kick, but I know my capacities, so I was not surprised to see it going.”
However, the head coach of New England, Thomas Tuchel, had seen such competence relatively recently. He was in the stands on Stamford Bridge when James curled in a stop-time equalizer against Bournemouth in January.
The free kick against Latvia was perhaps an even better strike. Re -linking again with Tuchel made it a comfortable return to the English team.
“Yes, that certainly helped, see familiar faces again,” James continues. “The team is different from what it was before. There are now many younger players.
“I feel that the group is now closer, these are exciting times. Our goal is to win the World Cup and on paper there are not many teams that are better, we just have to translate that into the field.”
There is a feeling that James wants to make up for lost time. All ambitions in England are linked at club level, now he is regularly playing for Enzo Maresca again.
On Thursday evening, the search for a return to the Champions League continues with a home game against Tottenham Hotspur, for a short hop in West Londs on Sunday afternoon to be confronted with Brentford.
“Our goal is to play Champions League football next year,” James adds. “I think there will be more of us, they are early days.
“We have learned a lot this season and are still learning. We have come to jumping this year and fighting the best teams in the competition on a consistent basis.
“I think the balance of the team is the key, to have different players for different roles. Everyone complements each other well and that helps where we are so far. Hopefully reflect our versions how far we have come.
“The way the head coach is with the team, the way he wants us to play and how passionate he is, makes it fun. Our idea and focus remain the same, regardless of who we play.”
Spending so much time on the sidelines has given James the opportunity to not only consider his own Chelsea trip, but also the direction the club has set.
It is almost three years since Roman Abramovich de Clearlake Capital of Todd Boehly was sold out and the success is hard to find under the new property.
As a club captain, James feels a responsibility to ensure that there is a dressing room harmony and believes that the club is firmly on the right track again.
“If you have many new players and employees, the meaning of the club can sometimes get lost in the translation,” he explains. “But everyone here is very much on the same page, we all have the same goal.
“If people have different values and see things in a different way, it makes the task a lot harder. There are many parties to become a good player, to be a good teammate, to become an all -round team.
“There are many pieces in the puzzle that people don't see. It is difficult to adapt to different cultures, a different competition and a different language, but everyone who has now arrived has adapted well and they take it in their pass.”
So, has a forced period from the side seen James a new perspective on Chelsea and what the club stands for in his own eyes?
“No, I would not say that it has changed my opinion about something in terms of what the club means to me. It has always meant the same thing. Put on the shirt and walking to Stamford Bridge, Chelsea is my home.
“I started here as a little boy and my dream was to play for the club one day. Put on the shirt and represent the club and be the club captain is a great feeling for me.”
His new role in midfield seemed like a simple transition for a player who spent his younger days in this more advanced position on the field.
“It is somewhere where I grew up a lot as a child, perhaps from U11s to U16S, and a bit when I was on loan [at Wigan Athletic during the 2018-19 season].
“So it's not really new for me, it's just a case of myself reminding how to play there. I enjoy playing the role and helping the team as much as possible.
“I played different positions that grew up in the academy. If you speak with most players of the first team, the position in which they now play now is probably not the one they started playing as a child. I enjoy wherever I play on the field.”
There is also a rating to return to the first XI team magazine, after so many struggles with injuries. A Reece James back to his very best will be a huge advantage for his club and country.
'Eventually I will look back and say [the fitness challenges] has helped me, but at the moment it is quite difficult, “he concludes.” However, it has not had a negative effect.
“There is a lot to look forward to, strongly finish this season and then go in next season, whatever that can bring.”
View Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur Live on Sky Sports on Thursday evening; kick -off 8 p.m.
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