Thomas Tuchel has confirmed Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic stands a chance of featuring against Liverpool in tomorrow's FA Cup final at Wembley.
The Croatia international was forced off 30 minutes into the Londoners' victory over Leeds United on Wednesday evening following a poor challenge from Daniel James, which resulted in the former Manchester United winger being shown a straight red card by Anthony Taylor.
It seemed as though Kovacic, like Fabinho, would therefore miss out on Saturday's showpiece fixture in the capital but the 28-year-old could yet be involved in the squad to take on the Reds. Asked whether the former Real Madrid man had participated in training, Tuchel responded at his press conference by stating: "We will try it today, which is pretty surprising that we are even in the situation to try it. Mateo wants to try it, and the medical department gave the green light to try it.
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"The ligament is already torn from the last incident [Dan James], so there is no new injury, but he is in heavy pain and it's heavily swollen. We're hoping maybe time is enough that he makes it. We will try it in training, and we'll know more about it."
Tuchel was also asked about N'Golo Kante, who has not featured since starring in a 1-1 draw away to Manchester United on April 28. The 2018 World Cup winner is also in contention for the FA Cup final, however, after returning to training.
"We will also try with him today," explained the Chelsea boss. "He is keen to make it and hopefully he makes it to training 100 per cent. It is the moment to take risks," he added regarding the fitness of his midfield duo.
