Chelsea hope sending N’Golo Kante home from their tour of Japan for treatment on his knee injury will give the midfielder a better chance of being fit for the new season.
Kante has returned to London following a recurrence of a knee problem he suffered at the end of last season and, with three weeks until their Premier League opener against Manchester United, Chelsea will be closely monitoring the fitness of their World Cup-winner.
The setback is a blow for new Blues manager Frank Lampard, but Chelsea hope dedicated treatment with specialists at their Cobham base will speed up Kante’s recovery and boost his chances of recovering in time for the trip to Old Trafford on August 12.
Kante flew out with Chelsea to Japan and Lampard said last week he was confident the 28-year-old France international would be fit for the start of the season.
Kante had been training with the Chelsea squad, but after a session last week he reported discomfort in the same knee he injured ahead of the Europa League Final in May. He was declared fit as Chelsea beat Arsenal 4-1 in Baku, but then withdrew from international duty with France and is yet to feature for Chelsea in pre-season.
Chelsea squad 2019-20 | Injuries, contracts and squad numbers
Lampard has been working on a 4-2-3-1 formation which will restore Kante to the heart of the team after he was played out of position by former manager Maurizio Sarri last season.
