N'Golo Kante went one step closer to making his long-awaited return from injury this week after he was spotted warming up prior to Chelsea training with his team-mates. Following a lengthy spell on the side lines, Kante is slowly being integrated back into the fold and was therefore not involved in the full team session at Cobham.
Suffering what was thought to be a minor issue in Chelsea's second game of the season against Tottenham, Kante has not played for the Blues since August. After undergoing surgery in October, given the significance of the injury a timeline for his recovery was difficult to distinguish.
As his recovery continued, ahead of the Premier League resuming on Boxing Day, Graham Potter placed a rough timeframe on when Chelsea fans could expect to see Kante. "He's a while," Potter revealed. "He'll be end of February, start of March.
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Those dates are now upon us and Kante remains on track for the latter and he could yet be a hugely important player for Chelsea in the final few months of the season. football.london reported two weeks ago that the midfielder had been undertaking some very light work with his teammates on the grass at Cobham.
Despite his long-term absence, Kante has been heavily involved in Chelsea news given his contract is set to expire in the summer. However, chances of a free exit in the summer appear to be dwindling away as football.london understands that Chelsea hold confidence that a contract extension for Kante will be signed. Similarly, the Telegraph reports that the Frenchman is "on the verge" of penning a new deal, with an agreement between all parties seemingly close.
Another key midfielder closing in on a return will be huge for Chelsea as they hope to strengthen in that department in the summer. Kante remaining at the club could save Todd Boehly and co. millions in the short-term after spending £106million to sign Enzo Fernandez in the January transfer window.
The clubs of Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice, two of Chelsea's targets, will undoubtedly demand large fees to sanction an exit. Chelsea could even see their own record-breaking move used against them as a benchmark by Borussia Dortmund and West Ham.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Conor Gallagher and Mateo Kovacic have all played alongside Fernandez and while Chelsea may purchase a specific midfielder whose qualities contrast with Fernandez, the Blues may already have the perfect partner.
According to The Guardian, Chelsea are keen to see Kante build a partnership with Fernandez. Of course, that hope rests on some key conditions. The 31-year-old would need to agree a contract extension, although that does look close to occurring, and also remain injury-free for the remainder of the season once he returns.
Of the two, keeping him fit will likely be the challenge. Chelsea have already experienced injured players suffering setbacks on their returns to action. In the space of a month, issues suffered by Reece James and Wesley Fofana were exacerbated on their respective returns.
Potter will likely listen closely to the advice of his medical team on how to handle a return to first-team action for Kante and the Blues boss has already shown he is willing to do so, despite a desperate need for a win.
For the pivotal clash against Southampton, Potter was told that Thiago Silva, Kai Havertz, Mykhailo Mudryk, Raheem Sterling and James were all at risk of suffering an injury if they started, as per The Telegraph, and so none of the five, despite their importance, were named in the starting XI.
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