James Justin heads back to Wembley with Leeds United, having missed Leicester City’s shock FA Cup win in 2021 due to injury, and wants to make amends this time round
James Justin is on a mission to pile on the pain for Chelsea – and make up for one of the lowest moments of his career.
Justin was left devastated in 2021 when an ACL injury forced him to miss Leicester City’s shock FA Cup final triumph over Chelsea. The full back received a winners’ medal, having played in some of the previous rounds before getting injured, but admits he doesn’t even know where it is.
And now he wants to get his hands on another one on behalf of Leeds United, who meet managerless Chelsea in a crunch semi final showdown on Sunday.
Justin said: “It was a bittersweet moment, to be honest. Obviously I had played in a couple of rounds before and did well, but to be injured while my team-mates were out there, it was a bitter pill to swallow.
“At the end of the day it’s a team sport, and I’ve still got a medal to show for it. I don’t know where the medal is. It’s somewhere at home. It was a bad time in my career in terms of the injury, so I was just happy they got it over the line.
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“But it was one of the lower points. Everyone plays their part, though, whether you play in the third round or in the final. Everyone has a helping hand, so I’d played a part, but obviously not as much as I wanted to.
“Hopefully I can change that this time. Chelsea in the semi-final, it might be the same outcome, hopefully.”
Justin insists Leeds can beat Chelsea, and that Daniel Farke’s men will look to exploit weaknesses in opponents who head into the game having sacked Liam Rosenior, after losing seven of their last eight games in all competitions.
He said: “With the squad that we’ve got, obviously, we’ve had good results against some big sides this season. So nothing’s out of the question. And we’re going there with confidence after the last couple of wins.
“They’re obviously a top side with top talent. And since the manager came in, they’ve obviously changed their style a little bit. But they’ve still got the same tendencies. And hopefully, we can figure out a game plan to push on their weaknesses.”
Justin, who won his one England cap back in 2022, has never played at Wembley. And he is relishing the chance to finally grace one of football’s greatest stages.
Justin, who joined Leeds from the Foxes last summer for £10m, added: “Hopefully I can get the chance to be out there in an FA Cup final, which would be a dream for me. It’s an exciting prospect. Everyone hears about how big the pitch is, how grand it feels, so yeah, I’m excited to get the chance to play.
“I played for Luton growing up and and grateful for everything they taught me over the years. I was lucky enough to travel when I was a kid and played in high-pressure moments -and hopefully I handle them well now.
“Definitely it could be a career high, this season. I feel like this has been a fresh start for me and my family. I’ve played a lot over the second half of this season and I’m really enjoying it, enjoying living in the city.
“Hopefully we can achieve our main goal, which is staying in the Premier League – and then see what happens in the cup.”
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