Chelsea have had a number of players make an impact on international duty and Mateo Kovacic is the latest to do so. Following in the footsteps of Joao Felix and Noni Madueke, Mateo Kovacic managed a brace for Croatia as they defeated Turkey.
The Chelsea midfielder first arrived late in the opposition box to sidefoot past Mert Günok before latching onto the goalkeeper's save in first half injury time to take his tally to five goals in 93 appearances for the Vatreni.
The former Real Madrid and Inter Milan star is not renowned for his goalscoring prowess but finds himself with three strikes in March after an impressive goal against Leicester City earlier in the month.
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"When he scores, he scores two goals," said Croatian boss Zlatko Dalic. "He was great regardless of the goals. He fought, ran and closed a lot. It was the same in the defence phase, everywhere. This is the real Kovacic."
The return of the 'real Kovacic' is timely. For much of the 2022/23 season he has required a degree of management for knee and calf issues since his pre-season was disrupted in the USA.
Recent form brings plenty of promise, however, as the 28-year-old returns to Cobham for the final stretch of the term with Graham Potter's side aiming for Champions League glory and hopeful of leaving 10th spot in the Premier League behind.
Kovacic has played significant minutes in each of Chelsea's last four matches and donned the captain's armband against Leicester and Borussia Dortmund to leave a promising trajectory for the remainder of the season, with a promising partnership with Enzo Fernandez beginning to form.
A busy April awaits and a degree of rotation is certain in the Chelsea side as priorities are required. The Blues face three Premier League matches before the first leg of their clash against Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-final on April 12th. Players want to play in most games but certainly a European tie against a former side is one Kovacic will have his eye on.
With Fernandez looking an indisputable choice in the centre of midfield, Kovacic will be hoping his form sees him be selected ahead of the returning N'Golo Kante. The Frenchman has remained at Cobham during the international break having made the bench against Everton, and stuck to a strict regimen that saw him feature in a friendly last Friday.
At his best, there may not be any player that can stop Kante being selected but with the familiarity forming between Kovacic and Fernandez, the Croatian will be proving a formidable case should his teammate be deemed fit enough to compete for a starting spot against Los Blancos.
It may not be all that Kovacic is playing for though. The Chelsea ace is yet to enter discussions with the club over a new contract and is set to enter the final year of his deal in the summer. There has been no overwhelming commitment from either party thus far but the impact Kovacic can have in the final weeks of the season are sure to help dictate any interest he can draw and any offer from the Blues given a number of other possible departures.
Regardless, Potter will have his focus on now and be pleased to see Kovacic truly finding his feet in the season and being able to start regularly.
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