…and Kovacic’s positive test is blow for Chelsea

WOBBLING form and midfield injuries, compounded by a positive Covid test for Mateo Kovacic, have convinced Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel there is no sense spinning the roulette wheel in Russia. Jorginho, N’Golo Kante, Ben Chilwell and Trevoh Chalobah are injured and out of tonight’s Champions League match at Zenit St Petersburg, where Chelsea must win to be sure of topping Group H. Problems deepened when Kovacic, having returned to training on Monday after missing six weeks with a hamstring problem, tested positive the next day. He must now isolate for 10 days. It was the only positive result in the camp. ‘Bad news,’ said Tuchel before flying to St Petersburg, where temperatures have been down to -15oC. ‘Mateo was in training with a big smile, pure pleasure to have him back. He will be out for several days, which is a huge setback. It is not only one player missing. It has an effect on others playing more, sometimes in acute overload. ‘Two or three games in a week isn’t the problem but it’s a huge difference in detail. We have a long trip, we sit in the bus, we sit in the plane, we have time difference and we will arrive in the early morning of Thursday, and that affects automatically your line-up for Saturday.’ Chelsea, who qualified for the last 16 with a brilliant 4-0 win against Juventus two weeks ago, want to win the group to be seeded in Monday’s draw. ‘We will arrive with the aim to win and nothing else,’ said Tuchel. After taking four points from three Premier League games, however, Saturday’s clash with Leeds has become the priority. Tuchel suspects his team’s recent problems might hinge on injuries and fatigue in midfield, where Jorginho has been playing on despite back pain. The Brazil-born Italy international was rested at Watford last week but recalled at West Ham because Kante and Kovacic were out and Saul Niguez is struggling with the intensity of English football. ‘Sometimes you overload players, especially Jorgi, who comes from the Euros, the Champions League, with no pre-season straight into the Super Cup final,’ said Tuchel. ‘We knew he would face this dip in freshness and form and it happens in the moment our two main other midfielders are out injured. Maybe this is what all our problems refer to but, still, we can do better in the details.’