"I tell you, not as a coach and not as an expert, but for me, it is very unlikely," Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel said on Mateo Kovacic's chances of playing against Liverpool in Saturday's FA Cup final. It's the words no Chelsea supporter wanted to hear after the midfielder was taken off in the first-half of his side's 3-0 win against Leeds United.
"I see him - first of all, if Mateo goes out, he never goes out, and he played in the semi-final of the FA Cup with the same injury and tried to play another 15 minutes, which was almost impossible," Tuchel added on Kovacic. "Now he went out. It was a swollen ankle, and he is in a lot of pain.
"For me, I am not a doctor, and we need to wait for the examinations. It is very unlikely he can play. It is absolutely bad news for us on a perfect evening."
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Kovacic, who has arguably been Chelsea's most consistent midfielder this season, now looks set to be sidelined for the cup final. It's Chelsea's biggest game of the season, and they're without one of their strongest players.
The form of the Croatian has been so good that he has earned huge praise from one of the Premier League's greatest-ever midfielders in Steven Gerrard. The former Liverpool captain was asked who his top five midfielders were in world football, and he named Kovacic alongside Mason Mount, Jude Bellingham, Fabinho and Kevin De Bruyne.
Gerrard told Rio Ferdinand's Vibe with FIVE podcast (via Metro): "[I] love Mason Mount, what he is doing. Kovacic at Chelsea."
This may have served as a warning to Liverpool ahead of the FA Cup final showdown at the weekend, but it is no longer something Jurgen Klopp needs to worry about. Mason Mount, on the other hand, is a threat the Liverpool manager will be keen to address in his side's pre-match preparations.
Kovacic, however, is one less problem for Klopp to contend with on Saturday. The German coach is likely to come up against Jorginho and Ruben Loftus-Cheek now, the midfield duo that finished the match at Elland Road. Kovacic would have been a definite starter for Tuchel, as he confirmed after the win against Leeds.
"If he misses it [FA Cup final], I'm very disappointed because he was a clear starter," Tuchel said. "If you look at the quality today with Jorgi and him in central midfield when we played eleven against eleven, it was a very strong start. He is a key figure for us in midfield.
"He played against Liverpool - I think both matches from the beginning - and was very strong. He's super, super hungry and determined, and excited to play these matches. And, of course, he is in fear he will miss it. We will see. We need to wait. Maybe we have a miracle and make it possible."
