Chelsea already one step away from new Reece James replacement after 'secret' squad U-turn

Josh Acheampong returned to a Chelsea match squad for the first time in over six weeks as he was selected on the bench for Felipe Coelho's Under-21 side on Friday night. The defender had trained with Enzo Maresca and the senior squad on Wednesday at Cobham.

It is a move towards a full return for Acheampong after a contract dispute saw him indefinitely barred from playing or training for the club at any level. His reintegration into the setup suggests that headway has been made.

Acheampong, 18, made his Chelsea debut earlier this year as a late substitute for Mauricio Pochettino a 2-0 win over Tottenham at Stamford Bridge. That came just over five months after he signed a professional deal at the club keeping him on board until 2026.

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However, with interest in him already emerging from teams across Europe, Chelsea are keen to tie him down to a longer contract. football.london understands that Acheampong's camp backed out of extending his commitment to his boyhood club, resulting in the effective punishment.

Despite getting back to training, Acheampong was not selected as part of Maresca's travelling party for Thursday's Conference League group phase match against Bundesliga outfit Heidenheim. Instead, he appears to have been left to feature in the Midlands against Derby County Under-21s.

Acheampong was named as a substitute for the Premier League 2 clash. Fellow Cobham prospects Kiano Dyer, and Shim Mheuka - who were unused members of the matchday squad on Thursday night - were selected to start. The duo only arrived back in England early on Friday morning.

Sam Rak-Sakyi, who made his first appearance in the 8-0 victory over Noah earlier in November and featured briefly in Germany as a late replacement for Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, was on the bench. Tyrique George also got the nod to start having come on in the final minutes on Thursday.

Acheampong will now be hoping to get himself back into the senior fold as a gap opens up. Reece James is set for a period out with yet another hamstring injury, Chelsea aren't putting a timeline on his return, football.london understands, and Malo Gusto has been out with illness since the international break.

Axel Disasi deputised against Heidenheim, as he has throughout the Conference League to date, with Wesley Fofana used in the win over Leicester City last weekend. Acheampong, able to play as a centre-back and right-sided full-back, has ambitions on making himself a regular in the squad.

Maresca has played down any changes in his situation regardless of his return to action. "He had a session with us in the last two days with some of the young players," the head coach said prior to Heidenheim.

"He is not in the squad for tomorrow, and we have four or five from the second team with us. He has just been training with us for the last two days."Maresca added: "There is not any update in terms of contract or these kind of things."