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Player reportPremier League 2026

Reece James

Chelsea
Ball-playing centre-back CB
6.6 progressive passes/90 · 2.0 line-breaking/90
centre-backstopper centre-backbuild-upline-breaking
312
minutes
4 apps
207
passes
86% completed
86%
pass completion
207 passes
23
progressive passes
6.6/90
25
line-breaking passes
7.2/90
38
defensive actions
11.0/90
4
tackles + interceptions
50% tackle win
7
clearances
2.0/90
Overview

The player

Who he is and how he compares with his peers.

Thin sample this season. Reece James has played 4 matches (312 min) so far, so sections that need a bigger sample to say anything reliable are not shown here — they are missing on purpose, not broken. See all seasons combined →
01

What Patterns Define Him?

His repeatable signature. A step only appears if its reliability score (sample size × match coverage) reaches at least Medium confidence — pattern mining, not anecdotes.

RECEIVE
in the first line of build-up — mostly in the middle third (71% of his 207 passes)
86% completion · 207× in 4/4 matches
↓
BREAK A LINE
vertical pass past the opponent midfield
6.6 prog/90 · 25× in 3/4 matches
↓
SWITCH PLAY
diagonal to the far side
cross-field balls · 10× in 3/4 matches
↓
PROGRESS
entries into the final third
5.2/90 · 18× in 3/4 matches
Signature: Receive → Break A Line → Switch Play → Progress — the only steps proven repeatable this season (4 of 5 in the full pattern). Not enough evidence yet for the rest of the chain below.
Not a pattern: carry out — 2× (low confidence, shown as a number only, no tactical conclusion drawn) — omitted from the signature rather than presented as one.
16

Where is he influential — vs where is he merely present?

Red fill = raw touch territory. Gold rings = zones where his influence (xT added, progression, line-breaks, key passes) outweighs how often he's actually there — one combined map instead of two separate maps to compare by eye. Red with no ring: present but not dangerous. A ring on faint red: rare touches, outsized impact.

own goal left, attacking →
52
passes / match
11.0
def actions / 90
7–96
pass range (matches)
7
clearances
Pass range = his fewest and most passes in any single match this season (7 at the low end, 96 at the high) — a measure of match-to-match involvement, not pass distance.
In possession

In possession

What he does with the ball: build-up, progression, creation, carrying and finishing.

08

How dangerous are his carries?

Real ball-carries

41 tracked carries (11.8/90, 6 progressive, 311m total) — the ball moving with his touches, a different signal from dribbles below (beating an opponent 1v1). even a player who rarely dribbles past a man can still carry the ball forward constantly in build-up; this is that.

2%12%12%2%20%12%22%5%7%5%
progressivelateral/short% of his 41 carries originating in each zone · own goal left, attacking →
Every carry, exact path — median 7m, longest 22m
By zone — where the carry started → where it ended
2Outside → Inside
32Inside → Inside
7Outside → Outside
First (16)Second (13)Third (12)grouped by carry pattern (start + end position), largest group first
startendown goal left, attacking →

Beaten in the tackle

How often an attacker gets past him in a 1v1 defensive duel — the closest signal the data has to "dribbled past" (no attacker-beat-defender field exists directly, so this counts tackles he attempted and lost).

2
tackle duels
1
won
1
beaten · 50%
brighter band = more tackle duels · own goal left, attacking →
INSIDE 50%
OUTSIDE 50%
Tackle-duel location — 1 inside · 1 outside
Right Wing
1 · 50%
Right Half-Space
1 · 50%
Central
0 · 0%
Left Half-Space
0 · 0%
Left Wing
0 · 0%
Vision AI beaten in 1 of 2 tackle duels (50% loss rate) — a solid 1v1 defensive record.
Every tackle duel, exact location
wonlost — dribbled pastown goal left, attacking →

He attempted only 1 dribble of his own all season — dribbling is not part of this role; his ball-carrying is covered above, his defending against the dribble below.

03

How does he build & move the ball?

How does he escape the first line?

17%
vertical passes
14×
6%
switches
5×
26%
carries
21×
51%
short circulation
42×
Answer: he escapes the press primarily through carrying — stepping out with the ball.

How he moves the ball — his 4 busiest progression routes, not where every pass starts and ends separately. Arrow width = how often, colour = xT gained, dashed = switch of play. The full breakdown is in the lane matrix below.

own goal left, attacking →
Lane transition matrix — when he receives in a lane, where does it go?
TO →RWRHSCLHSLWRW3040%1240%1220%6RHS4441%1816%739%172%12%1C7310%721%1547%3416%127%5LHS239%213%330%717%430%7LW729%243%329%2FROM
Rows normalised: each row sums to 100% of that lane's completed passes. Grey number = passes from that lane.

Primary route: central areas in the middle third → central areas in the middle third — 2 progressive passes (9% of his progression) at 0.014 xT each. He keeps it in the same lane.

His progression is inward: 50% of progressive passes move the ball toward the middle versus 14% going wider — he cuts in rather than holding width.

8% of his passes are cross-field switches — he changes the point of attack often.

Quality behind the volume: 7 line-breaking passes and 18 final-third entries, 3.5 total xT added.

Origin and destination are measured on the same event row — no receiver inference. Receiver identity is not recoverable from this data source.
All passes — origin zone share
Filter: from to
4%10%13%8%1%4%21%18%3%0%1%3%6%2%5%
completedincomplete207 passes · any zone → any zone · own goal left, attacking →
207
passes
86%
completed
30
lost
Vision AIIn line with his 86% season completion rate.
04

How does he progress play?

How much he drives the ball forward. Progressive = completed pass advancing ≥15 toward goal.

23
progressive · 6.6/90
18
final-third entries · 5.2/90
5
box entries · 1.44/90
24
progression index /90
Progression index: one composite number — progressive passes + progressive carries + 2% of total distance progressed + 8× positive xT added, all per 90. Weights VOLUME and THREAT together rather than counting progressive actions alone.
12

How does he create chances?

2 key passes (0.58/90), 0 of them assists — where his chance creation specifically comes from, 18 zones (6×3), showing his share of key passes originating there.

Chance creation — key pass origin zone share
Filter:
50%50%
chance creation (2)assist (0)% of the selected group's key passes originating in each zone
09

Where does he become vulnerable?

31 times he gave the ball away. For a defender the danger is where — a loss in his own third can turn into a chance against; higher up it costs little.

14
attacking third (cheap)
12
middle third
5
own third (dangerous)
Vision AI 45% of losses are in the attacking third — he gambles where a turnover costs little.
Mistake danger (proxy): 2.20 danger-index/90 · 0.246 avg/turnover. Weights each loss by threat conceded at that location. True xT-conceded needs the opponent possession model; positional proxy.
05

What is his passing profile?

207
passes attempted
41%
mostly forward
50%
mostly short
Direction
Forward
85 · 41%
Sideways
80 · 39%
Backward
42 · 20%
Length (completed)
Short (<15m)
89 · 50%
Medium
75 · 42%
Long (>30m)
13 · 7%
10

Preferred Progression Routes — xT-weighted

His progressive passes as zone→zone routes, weighted by expected threat (xT) added — arrow width and the number are the total xT generated on each route, not just how often he plays it. This is where he actually moves the needle.

0.310.310.290.280.220.21
own goal left, attacking →
Highest-value routes (xT)
0.31
Left Half-Space Mid third → Central Att third
1 passes
0.31
Central Mid third → Central Mid third
3 passes
0.29
Left Wing Att third → Central Att third
1 passes
0.28
Left Half-Space Mid third → Right Wing Att third
2 passes
0.22
Central Mid third → Right Wing Att third
1 passes
0.21
Right Half-Space Att third → Central Att third
1 passes · 1 to a shot
06

Where Does He Receive?

The zones where Reece James gets on the ball — his top three ball-collection areas highlighted (gold = primary). Reception is proxied by where his on-ball actions begin (no explicit receiver is recorded).

123
1 = primary, 2 = secondary, 3 = third · own goal left, attacking →
His collection zones
31%
Primary
Central, Middle third
19%
Secondary
Right Half-Space, Middle third
10%
Third
Right Wing, Middle third
These are the zones where he collected the ball most.
07

Where Does He Operate? — Every Zone

Every on-ball touch (pass, dribble, shot) binned into a 6×3 grid — raw counts of where Reece James actually gets on the ball. Hover any zone for its breakdown by action type, its share of all touches, and the exact coordinate range it covers.

Filter:
127127109443711192027163
own goal left, attacking → · brighter + higher number = more touches

Passes only — completed vs incomplete, by zone

Same zone grid, restricted to passes so completed/incomplete and match filters actually mean something — a shot or a dribble has no "completed" in the pass sense.

4%10%13%8%1%4%21%18%3%0%1%3%6%2%5%
own goal left, attacking →
11

Every Pass This Season — completed vs incomplete

Every pass this season, plotted individually — green = completed, grey (dashed) = incomplete, gold = key pass. Filter by outcome or isolate one match below.

2Key pass
4Cross
23Progressive
25Long ball
10Switch
By zone — where the pass started → where it landed
23Outside → Inside
100Inside → Inside
14Outside → Outside
40Inside → Outside
By direction
85Forward
42Backward
80Sideways
own goal left, attacking →
02

Tactical patterns — how his football actually looks

Three clustered sequence diagrams from his own event data — his three busiest routes: the way he progresses, the pattern behind his chances, and where a turnover turns dangerous.

own goal left, attacking →
How does he progress the ball forward?
His most common route for progressing play: he plays inside from the left hs toward the central, advancing it forward in the middle third — 1 passes worth 0.31 xT.
Where do his chances come from?
Of 2 key passes, his busiest route is a delivery where he plays inside from the left hs toward the central, advancing it forward in the middle third — 1 times. The receiver isn't identifiable in this data, only where the pass started and ended.
Where does he lose the ball most?
This is a RATE, not a raw count — the share of his touches in each zone that end in a turnover, so a zone he simply plays in more often doesn't automatically look riskier. His weakest zone is the left wing in the final third: 80% of his 10 touches there are lost (8 times).
—7 touches · too few—2 touches · too few11%1/9 lost—2 touches · too few—1 touch · too few14%3/21 lost10%4/39 lost5%3/64 lost6%1/18 lost—4 touches · too few11%1/9 lost33%4/12 lost—4 touches · too few—5 touches · too few80%8/10 lostRWRHSCLHSLWDEFMIDATT
Out of possession

Out of possession

Where and how he defends and presses.

13

How & where does he defend?

38 defensive actions across the season (11.0/90). Where he wins the ball, and how — the core question for a defender. Aerial duels are not recorded for this competition, so aerial dominance is not measured here.

click a card to isolate that action type · own goal left, attacking →
2
tackles · 50% won
2
interceptions · 0.6/90
15
recoveries · 4.3/90
7
clearances · 2.0/90
3
blocks
41
avg action height
1
won high (att 3rd)
22
middle third
15
own third
Vision AI A mid-block defender. He wins the ball mainly by stepping in — tackles, interceptions & recoveries outweigh clearances. 19 proactive ball-wins (5.5/90), tackle success 50%. He defends high, stepping out to intercept — suits a high line.
Team

Team context

How much of the team runs through him, and what changes without him.

14

Impact on the Team

Chelsea's output per match with Reece James (4 matches) versus without him (4 matches). Insufficient evidence — the without-sample is only 4 matches; treat every Δ below as noise until more games exist. What his own defending should move — goals conceded and results — leads; attacking output (largely out of a defender's hands) is shown after, for context. A proper on-off model needs many more minutes.

WITH (4)
WITHOUT (4)
Δ
goals against /match
2.25
1.50
+0.75
points /match
1.75
1.50
+0.25
goals for /match
2.50
1.75
+0.75
xG for /match
1.46
0.00
+1.46
15

His Share of the Team

Of everything Chelsea produced this season, the categories where the biggest share ran through Reece James specifically — his share of the team total, not a per-90 rate.

category
share
him / team
interceptions
8%
35 / 443
progressive passes
7%
162 / 2340
threat added by passing (xT)
7%
40.7 / 601.0
Recruitment

Style and verdict

Style profile, closest comparables, and the summary.

17

Playing-Style Profile

Not raw event counts — football style scores: weighted models scored 0–100 against the 515 centre-backs in the pool (min 450 min). This is what separates players who post similar numbers but play differently. Proxy dimensions are inferred from on-ball data; true off-ball running / under-pressure context is not measured.

Stopper centre-back75%Ball-playing centre-back48%
Why Stopper centre-back 75%: a weighted blend of ball-winning 85 (weight 40%) + defensive aggression 68 (weight 35%) + retention 35 (weight 15%) + transition 46 (weight 10%). The score reflects how distinctively his profile SHAPE matches this archetype vs his peers.
Elite
receiving zones, creativity, final-third threat, line-breaking, through-balls, ball-winning
Strong
progression, crossing, territory (wide vs central), box threat
Average
defensive aggression, dribbling, carrying, transition, build-up, press resistance
Weak
retention, passing directness
Unknown
aerial ability, marking, off-ball running — not in event data
Receiving zones
93
Creativity
91
Final-third threat
91
Line-breaking
90
Through-balls ~proxy
88
Ball-winning
85
Progression
81
Crossing
81
Territory (wide vs central)
74
Box threat
71
Defensive aggression
68
Dribbling
59
Carrying
52
Transition ~proxy
46
Build-up
44
Press resistance ~proxy
41
Retention
35
Passing directness
5
18

Similar Players — in style space

Closest comparables measured on the style scores above, within the same position family — so it separates how players are alike, not just how much they touch the ball. Each line explains the shared strength and the divergent mechanism. A light physical-profile term (height / weight; this player: 180 cm / 92 kg) is included at a quarter of one style axis's weight — enough to break ties between stylistic twins, not to override style. Scope: pooled across the Premier League, Bundesliga, La Liga, Ligue 1 and Serie A, percentiled within each player's own league before comparing — a match from another league is marked with its league name.

Style, not quality: a high match here means two players tend to produce the ball in similar ways — it is not a ranking, a scouting recommendation, or a claim that they are equally good.

Aboubakar Nagida Rennes · Ligue 1 · 176 cm / 74 kg
90%
Driven by: creativity (14%), ball-winning (13%), final-third threat (10%). Different mechanism — James more via retention; Nagida more via territory (wide vs central), defensive aggression.
Nahuel Molina Roma · Serie A · 175 cm / 70 kg
90%
Driven by: creativity (17%), receiving zones (11%), final-third threat (9%). Different mechanism — James more via build-up; Molina more via territory (wide vs central), dribbling.
Malo Gusto Chelsea · 178 cm / 67 kg
89%
Driven by: creativity (18%), receiving zones (12%), ball-winning (11%). Different mechanism — James more via box threat.
Philipp Sander Borussia Monchengladbach · Bundesliga · 186 cm / 77 kg
89%
Driven by: creativity (16%), ball-winning (15%), receiving zones (9%). Different mechanism — James more via final-third threat, dribbling.
Diogo Dalot Man Utd · 184 cm / 82 kg
89%
Driven by: receiving zones (11%), creativity (11%), line-breaking (10%). Different mechanism — James more via build-up; Dalot more via territory (wide vs central).
Arnau Martínez Valencia · La Liga · 182 cm / 72 kg
88%
Driven by: creativity (17%), ball-winning (11%), passing directness (11%). Different mechanism — James more via final-third threat.
19

Summary

Reece James is a stopper centre-back: 86% pass completion, 25 line-breaking passes and 6.6 progressive passes /90. A build-and-progress centre-back whose value is in beating the first line with the pass, not in raw defensive volume. [Aerial duels, marking, line-height and 1v1 recovery need aerial-event + tracking data, absent here.]

Based on 4 matches (312 minutes) — an early read, treat with caution until more minutes are logged. He profiles as a stopper centre-back — best used in a system built around that identity. His biggest room for growth is retention — even a modest improvement there would meaningfully lift his overall stopper centre-back profile.
✨ This report is interactive

Click any stat card to filter its map, hover a dot for the exact match, and use the dropdowns to slice passes zone-to-zone. Nothing here is static.

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