Boost for Chelsea as Kovacic & Kante passed fit for FA Cup final

Thomas Tuchel has hailed two “huge” FA Cup final boosts for Chelsea as Mateo Kovacic and N’Golo Kante have been passed fit to face Leicester.

Croatia star Kovacic has missed nine matches with a hamstring problem but is now ready to return for today’s Wembley showdown.

France World Cup winner Kante was kept out of Wednesday’s 1-0 Premier

League loss to Arsenal due to a painful Achilles issue.

But now Blues boss Tuchel has confirmed both midfield men are ready to take on the Foxes.

“The whole group is available, Kova is with us again,” said Tuchel.

“It’s huge because Mateo has everything that we need in midfield. He has experience, power, acceleration, deceleration, he can dribble the ball and beat players. He’s fast, he has physical ability and he’s experienced in big games and in the Premier League.

“When we missed N’Golo and Mateo in the same match we lacked a lot of quality, energy and experience.

“Billy Gilmour did a huge job in both games but it’s not fair to compare him to these players because they have more experience and they are a step ahead in their development.

“It’s what we need in the key moments of the season. It’s big news for us that Kova is back, he has a huge impact in the dressing room around big matches.”

Kante formed a pivotal part of Leicester’s Premier League title win in 2015 and will now go up against his old club in today’s cup final.

The linchpin midfielder has been back to his very best under German boss Tuchel, with the Chelsea head coach delighted to have one of his chief lieutenants back in top condition.

“Yes, it’s huge,” said Tuchel. “We took the decision together, him, me and the medical team, to leave him out and give him this Arsenal match to rest and have treatment to his right Achilles.

“It was pain management. It’s not a huge injury, it’s nothing you need to be afraid of getting bigger. It was just there, it was a bit annoying, just pain management and pain treatment.

“So he did all training sessions yesterday and today full, no complaints. He will start tomorrow and very likely finish the game for us.”