January 06, (THEWILL) – Kante and Thiago Silva of Chelsea have tested positive for COVID-19, according to Blues’ manager Thomas Tuchel.
The duo were conspicuously left out of Chelsea’s squad for the opening leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final against Tottenham Hotspur.
Chelsea was said to be dealing with a number of new COVID-19 instances before the match on Wednesday. And, in a pre-match interview, Tuchel revealed that Kante and Silva have coronavirus and are currently being isolated.
THEWILL recalls that Spurs manager Antonio Conte also indicated recently in a news conference that they were looking into a number of potential positive results in their own camp.
Spurs had to contend with a significant COVID-19 outbreak before Christmas, which forced them to postpone a number of Premier League games and ultimately see them relegated from the Europa Conference League.
Meanwhile, Chelsea has reintroduced Romelu Lukaku to the starting lineup. Following the publication of an interview with Italian media last week, the striker was benched for the Blues’ 2-2 draw with Liverpool.
Kepa Arrizabalaga has replaced the AFCON-bound Edouard Mendy in the Blues’ midfield, with Malang Sarr starting at centre-back.
Spurs are missing Eric Dier, who has emerged as a crucial player under Conte, and Matt Doherty starts at left-wing-back for the first time.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
