Mateo Kovačić: Crucial Chelsea player out for game vs Real Madrid
No Champions League football for Mateo Kovačić in back-to-back games after Thomas Tuchal confirmed he is the only player missing through injury.
Nearly, but just one shy of a fully-fit and firing on all cylinders Chelsea squad for Tuchel. It also looks as if N’Golo Kante will be an intricate figure in their success again.
In the Blues Champions League quarter-final second leg 1-0 win, Kante stepped in for the injured Mateo Kovačić, who at the time, believed he would not miss many fixtures as the training issue did not appear too serious.
It was reported by the club that during the final training session before their quarter-final victory, Kovačić wobbled off the training pitch and was unable to finish the rest of the session.
Worryingly, the player is yet to feature since then and has already missed all of the last four outings across all competitions. The manager confirmed the Croatian has still not been able to train with the rest of the squad.
More from Champions League
- Manchester United predicted lineup vs Bayern Munich – UEFA Champions League 2023/24
- Arsenal predicted lineup vs PSV: Mikel Arteta to drop “Henry-esque” winger
- Newcastle predicted lineup vs AC Milan: Tough decisions for Eddie Howe
- Newcastle United extend Callum Wilson’s contract for another year
- Arsenal: Mikel Arteta excludes £38m signing in Champions League squad
"Kovacic limped out of our final training session before the quarter-final second leg against Porto and has missed the past four matches with a muscle injury as a result.The issue will continue to sideline the midfielder for this week’s European action, with Tuchel revealing that, as of Saturday evening, he had yet to train with the group at Cobham."
Tuchel hoping Mateo Kovačić will be back in time for the Fulham fixture
The manager explained it is too early for him to go up against his old club Real Madrid but should be back in time for the London derby against Fulham this Saturday coming. Him missing for only one more fixture is the only good news to come from the bad news.
Kovačić has been a mainstay in Thomas Tuchel’s line-up, barely missing a beat or kick of the ball. Since the German’s arrival, both Kovačić and Jorginho have found a new lease of life at Stamford Bridge and the club have profited from their resurgence in form.
The pair have become important figures for Chelsea and the Blues boss reiterated this when talking about him.
The manager spoke of his importance;
"At the moment, we’re suffering a bit with our two number sixes because of the injury for Mateo,’ explained Tuchel after our victory at West Ham.Hopefully he can come back against Fulham but he did not train with the team yet so I think that Tuesday will be too early unfortunately. He was so happy to play against his former team-mates and he is a crucial player for us.He could have helped a lot in the last games against Brighton and West Ham with his technique and his ball runs but it’s like this. The team is doing an amazing job and we have to keep on going. (Via: chelseafc.com)"
As previously stated in the most recent injury update on Mateo Kovačić by The Top Flight, N’Golo Kante is a world-class midfielder and any manager would welcome him onto the pitch in the absence of another.
Related Story. Tuchel has brought Chelsea back to life. light
He helped Chelsea to their 1-0 victory over Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-finals two weekends back. If this is anything to go by, Chelsea’s midfield is in safe hands until the injured Mateo returns to action.