BREAKING: Reports reveal the extent of Kante’s injury and his return date

France took on Bulgaria last night in an attempt to secure qualification for the 2018 Wolrd Cup and Blaise Matuidi strike ensured that they inched one step closer to it. But all was not rosy for France last night, as Kante was forced off with a thigh/hamstring injury in the 34th minute(and was replaced by Rabiot).

Deschamps later confirmed that Kante had indeed suffered a hamstring injury and would not feature in France’s World Cup qualifier on Tuesday.

And while France would be saddened by Kante’s injury, they still have some very able replacements on their bench who can get the job done for them.

Chelsea on the other hand will be devastated, as Kante has been an indispensable part of their team, and his absence will hurt them big time, especially with so many games coming up.

The L’Equipe has reported that after preliminary scans, it seems as if Kante will be out until 2018, as he has suffered a severe grade 3 hamstring tear.

https://twitter.com/CheIsTransfer/status/916768339594276865

With Alvaro Morata already out for more than a month, it seems like Chelsea are in for a small mid season crisis. Conte would be hoping that Bakayoko, Fabregas and Batsyuahi can fill into the big boots of Morata and Kante, and somehow provide them with that much needed impetus at this stage of the season.

Chelsea face Crystal Palace next before taking on Roma during midweek in the Champions League, and would be dreading injuries to two of their key men during time of ‘fixture congestion’.