N’Golo Kanté’s fitness is Graham Potter’s top priority, not whether Chelsea should renew the midfielder’s contract before it expires in the summer of 2019.Injuries have plagued Kanté for the past three years, and because he has been sidelined with a hamstring issue since August, his fitness issues are expected to come up in negotiations for a new contract. Potter’s predecessor at Chelsea, Thomas Tuchel, stated last month that the France international may be forced to sign a deal with fewer benefits due to his problems.
Potter, however, said that Kanté won’t be available when Chelsea faces Milan at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night in an attempt to open their Champions League campaign. Potter, however, isn’t considering the 31-year-long-term old’s prospects. The head coach indicated that he is unconcerned about Kanté being free to negotiate a pre-contract with overseas teams as of January 1.
My current goal is to assist him in a positive way during his rehabilitation so that he can be accessible for us and on the field, said Potter. “He is a great asset for us when he is on the field. The other matter is between him and the club. My main goal is to make him fit so he can enjoy playing football. The sooner NG returns, the better because there aren’t many football players like him in the world.
Potter said he needs to exercise caution because Kanté is not yet training at full speed. Potter would not say whether he would be interested in signing Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United in January. Chelsea will need backup midfielders against Milan because they fear missing out on the round of 16 after earning just one point from their opening two games in Group E.
Potter’s decision to keep Kepa Arrizabalaga in goal while having injury concerns over Jorginho and Kai Havertz is another thing to think about. Despite Édouard Mendy’s return from injury, Potter has yet to choose a first-choice goalkeeper. I’m not in a rush, he declared. You left it up to football.
With four points in first place in the group, Milan is in serious injury trouble. Theo Hernández, Davide Calabria, Alexis Saelemaekers, Junior Messias, and Alessandro Florenzi are absent for the Italian champions, along with Mike Maignan, Simon Kjaer, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and Theo Hernández.
