The 24-year-old faced a lengthy layoff after winning the Women's European Championship in the summer, having sustained an injury during the tournament itself.

James returned to action against St Polten in the Women's Champions League in mid-November, and the player who Chelsea head coach Sonia Bompastor described as having 'magic feet' made an immediate impact, forcing an own goal in the 6-0 victory with a powerful shot.

While her spells in the gym working her way back to fitness have been arduous, James is looking at the positive of how she has grown through those difficult times.

'It's very difficult,' she says. 'Especially when you've been injured a few times, and you go back into rehab. So my target now is just to stay out of rehab.

'My happiness is always when I’m on the pitch. When you’re not playing, you're not really the same person. But as long as you've got your good friends around you and your family, they can help to keep you on track, and sometimes things can be a blessing in disguise.

'Injury layoffs can help you get stronger in areas that you weren't so strong in, both physically and mentally.'

Now James is back in contention to face Everton, she smiles when we recount last season's matchup against the Toffees.

With the scores locked at 1-1 at Kingsmeadow, LJ hit a stunning winner in the third minute off stoppage time to hand us the victory. That experience alone is enough to ward off any complacency.

'I think it's going to be a tough game,' she continues. 'They always are. Everton always give us a good game. We've obviously got to make sure we're performing at our best level, and then hopefully we get the winner and score more. The aim is to score goals.'

The obvious question is what's next for a player who has so much talent. Yet there's a feeling that James just wants to start enjoying her football again, taking one step at a time towards the ultimate goal: more silverware.

'I never really look back and see what I've achieved so far,' she concludes. 'I'm always looking for what can I achieve next and what I want to try to win next.'

The next step on Lauren James' and Chelsea's horizon is three points against Everton on Sunday afternoon.