Chelsea have been handed a double injury boost ahead of Saturday's clash against West Ham United with both Mateo Kovacic and Denis Zakaria returning to training this week.
Kovacic has struggled with injuries throughout the campaign and missed last Friday's draw against Fulham and the stalemate at Anfield against Liverpool due to a calf issue. The Croatian midfielder has started just seven Premier League matches for Chelsea this season but is in contention to feature at the London Stadium.
Zakaria has been sidelined since hobbling off during Chelsea’s defeat to Fulham at Craven Cottage. The Switzerland international has been ruled out for almost a month but has stepped up his recovery this week and has been involved in sessions with the first-team squad.
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Chelsea's injury issues have started to ease after a period in January in which 10 senior players were ruled out. Reece James made his return from a knee issue last week against Fulham, as did Ben Chilwell who had been ruled out since early November with a hamstring injury. Ruben Loftus-Cheek was also involved in the match-day squad.
Wesley Fofana, meanwhile, has continued to step up his comeback from a knee issue that has kept him out since October. The French defender was due to return at the end of December after the World Cup but suffered a setback in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Brentford.
Fofana, who joined Chelsea in the summer transfer window from Leicester City in a deal worth £70million, has since undertaken further recovery work at Cobham and is being eased back into first-team training.
Edouard Mendy remains out after undergoing surgery on a fractured finger last month while Christian Pulisic is continuing his recovery from a knee injury sustained against Manchester City. Armando Broja isn't expected to return this season having suffered a knee ligament injury during a friendly in Abu Dhabi against Aston Villa.
There remains hope that N’Golo Kante will be available come the end of this month. The midfielder has played less than 180 minutes of football for Chelsea this season due to a hamstring issue he underwent surgery for in October. football.london understands Kante has undertaken some very light work with his teammates but is not yet back in full training with the first-team group.
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