Chelsea receive massive injury boost as 3 key players including Mateo Kovacic return to first-team squad

Chelsea boss Graham Potter has revealed that Wesley Fofana, Denis Zakaria, and Mateo Kovacic have returned from injury. The trio could be available for the Blues' UEFA Champions League Round of 16 first leg with Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday (February 15).

Potter's side have endured an injury-cursed season since he succeeded Thomas Tuchel in the Stamford Bridge dugout. However, the return of Fofana, Zakaria and Kovacic comes at a crucial time, with the Premier League giants competing in the knockouts of the Champions League.

The Blues manager said in his pre-match press conference (via football.london):

"Wesley Fofana, Denis Zakaria and Mateo Kovacic are all in the squad,oso that's good. They are getting closer to minutes, and the challenge for us is to build them up."

Next stop, Dortmund! 👋🇩🇪 / @ChelseaFC

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Fofana has been out of action since early October when he picked up a serious knee injury in Chelsea's 3-0 win over AC Milan, a game he scored in. He has featured just six times across competitions since arriving from Leicester City last summer for £70 million.

Meanwhile, Zakaria has managed more minutes than the French defender since joining Chelsea from Juventus last summer till the end of the season. He has made nine appearances, scoring one goal, and was starting to hit top form before a hamstring injury struck. The Swiss midfielder has not featured since early December.

Kovacic, meanwhile, has been out of action since mid-January with a calf problem. The Croatian has played 22 games this season, scoring one goal and providing an assist.

The trio will likely be slowly brought back into the first team fold as they get themselves back to full fitness. Chelsea face Dortmund at Signal Iduna Park tomorrow and will hope to start their last 16 tie on a winning note.

Dortmund coach Edin Terzic looking forward to facing Chelsea boss Potter

Dortmund manager Terzic claims to have known Potter for years and is looking forward to the two sides' clash on Wednesday. Terzic recalled the English manager's time in charge of Swedish outfit Ostersunds, telling The Telegraph:

“He was the coach of Ostersunds at that time. And if you listen to the story of how he went to Sweden and how he changed not only the culture inside the club but inside the whole city before he went back to the UK, then it is something very impressive."

Terzic added:

“I really like him as a person and as a coach."

The German went on to reveal that the duo exchanged texts about the new managerial roles they find themselves in:

“It’s a crazy story if you see that five years ago we were on a course, and now we are facing each other in the Champions League. It’s an unbelievable story. We are always texting each other on the new roles, on important wins, and we are really looking forward to seeing each other.”

🏆 DFB Pokal
7⃣ Straight league wins
🇪🇺 #UCL spot secured

👏 Job done for @BVB interim boss Edin Terzic, who signs off in style https://t.co/ZkmKDVv1l6

Terzic was appointed BvB boss in June and has overseen 18 wins in 29 games. Dortmund are third in the Bundesliga, trailing leaders Bayern Munich by three points after 20 games.