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For 50 minutes or so Chelsea's return to action was going about as well as it could.

After looking like they needed the World Cup break as much as any Premier League team, suffering four successive domestic defeats going into it, the time off appeared to have done Graham Potter's side a world of good.

They were blowing and at times helpless Bournemouth away and it seemed only a matter of how many they would score and how much of a statement they would make.

Then Reece James after appearing to hurt his knee again.

An audible groan swept around Stamford Bridge as he fell to the floor after signalling to the bench straight away he needed to come off.

A good chunk of the optimism Chelsea's performance created then disappeared with James as he went down the tunnel.

This was England defender James's first appearance for 11 weeks since suffering a right knee injury in October which wrecked his hopes of going to the World Cup.

He is now Chelsea's most influential player, remarkable for a young right-back, and provided reminders of why with his comeback coinciding with a much-improved and perked up display.

So the sad sight of a crestfallen James, combined with the prospect of him suffering another setback and what that may potentially mean for him and Chelsea, was a cause for obvious concern.