Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has revealed some disappointing news concerning midfielder N’Golo Kante’s fitness. The German manager shared that the Frenchman could be out for a few weeks.
Kante, 31, picked up an injury during Chelsea’s 2-2 draw against Tottenham Hotspur on August 14. He was subbed off in the 84th minute, with Conor Gallagher making his home debut for the Blues.
Tuchel spoke at a press conference ahead of their match against Leeds United at Elland Road on August 21. The tactician revealed some insight into the French World Cup winner’s fitness (via Football.London):
“We’re talking about weeks, which is not good news. We’re disappointed and sad because N’Golo was super fit.”
Kante’s absence will be a huge miss for the Blues, who will have to go into another weekend of games without the industrious midfielder. The Frenchman has struggled with injuries in recent times, as he played 42 matches across all competitions last season.
Chelsea will however have a rich bench to call on and will hopefully be able to manage in their next game against Leeds.
The German manager also mentioned that the Blues will also be without Armando Broja and Mateo Kovacic.
Tuchel will hope to get back to winning ways regardless of the injuries affecting his team following a fiery draw against Tottenham Hotspur last week.
Chelsea have been in form so far this season, picking up four points from a possible six. Other players on the team’s roster will now have to step up to the plate to help lead the club to more domestic success.
Chelsea are set to see nine players leave Stamford Bridge: Report
According to the Evening Standard (via Express), the Blues are gunning to sign Leicester City defender Wesley Fofana. However, his entrance may see the exit of nine players from Stamford Bridge this summer.
Leicester are requesting more than £80 million for the centre-back. Hence, the Blues will have to balance their books if they remain intent on bringing the star to Stamford Bridge.
Players who could leave include Emerson Palmieri, Billy Gilmour, Michy Batshuayi, Kenedy, Baba Rahman, and Ross Barkley. Other first-team names like Trevoh Chalobah may also exit the club, with Marcos Alonso already waiting for a Camp Nou move to materialize.
With links to Frenkie de Jong and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang now surfacing, it is clear that Chelsea will need to work out the accounting kinks soon. The reported mass exodus could still come, even though they have already let go of players like Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger.
How the Blues may line up in the coming months could differ from how they line up against Leeds on Sunday. For now, however, Tuchel will be hoping to make some headway in the transfer window.